For millions of commuters, who are dependent on the city's public transport system, rainy days bring misery and suffering in the form of the habitual defiance of the unruly drivers of taxicabs, CNG-run three-wheelers and rickshaws.

As usual, during the heavy rainfall yesterday the drivers insolently demanded100 percent more than the usual fare for a destination, putting passengers in a predicament.

Commuters, stranded in flocks at every passenger shed, shop and under sun sheds of different buildings, got inevitably drenched on the way to their respective destinations.

The incessant rain of the last couple of days assumed torrential volume on Saturday night and continued through rush hour of the next morning.

For Kashpia Khan, getting to school in time to take her first class was quite an ordeal.

Invariably, all the CNG-run auto rickshaw drivers demanded Tk70, double the usual fare, to take her from Gulshan-2 to Bashundhara point of Pragati Sarani.

"This is a helpless situation every time it rains," she said.

A resident of Indira Road, Shamila Nasrin waited long to avail a rickshaw to go to Karwan Bazar.

"But when I finally got one, I had to pay Tk15, double the usual fare," Nasrin said.

Md. Jahangir Hossain had to walk all the way from Katasur to his driving job in Lalmatia D-block, as there was no rickshaw available on the waterlogged streets.

After a lengthy wait, one CNG-run auto-rickshaw agreed to take this correspondent from Gulshan-1 to Karwan Bazar, but demanded Tk60 instead of the regular metered fare of around Tk32.

The metre of the three-wheeler (no-Dhaka Metro 12-9808) was also out of order.

The driver of the three-wheeler, Abdur Rob, said that he demanded more than metered fare because of rain and water logging on the road.

Replying to why he demanded double, he said, "Anyone would try to earn more."

"I know it is a punishable offence to run the vehicle without metre or with one out of order," admitted Rob.

Sometimes, the waterlogged streets become a trap for the motor vehicles, which fail to start when water enters their silencer pipe.

Traffic Inspector (west) Md. Altaf Hossain said that the transporters are not supposed to demand higher fare on grounds of rainfall.

"Legally, it is a punishable offence to demand more than the metered fare," said Hossain, "An offender can be fined with Tk700 for tampering with the metre, using an out-of-order metre, or exacting more than the standard fare."

Joint Commissioner (Traffic) Jasim Uddin too said that legally, drivers cannot demand more than the fixed fare. However, the traffic department of police has no legal mechanism to punish transporters directly for this offence.

"It is Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) that can take legal action against those demanding unauthorised fare," he said, "But local police can file a regular case against transporters exacting unauthorised fare on accusation of fraud."

Traffic police can take legal action against violation of traffic rules like tampering with metres, while the victims should file complaints with traffic control room in case drivers refuse to go to passengers' desired destinations, said the joint commissioner.