NEW YORK – Panic spread swiftly among thousands of South Asian taxi-drivers in New York City after killing of two of their fellow cabbies in a row in just one week in April. With these two victims, a total of seven taxi-drivers including an Indian were murdered in the city since January this year.

 The body of a 29-year-old African cab driver – the latest victim -- was recovered from Whitelock Avenue in Queens around midnight on February 14. Apparently, the victim was first robbed and then shot to death. Police is reportedly looking for the suspects, but no perpetrators have so far been booked for the crimes.

 “ We are on a double-edged sword. We put our life at risk if we take any passenger in our cab in the middle of the night. On the contrary, we violate law if we do not do so putting our living at stake,” said Gudnam Singh, 45, an Indian taxi driver who has been running cab in New York City for several years.

 Most attacks on the cab drivers come from their own passengers from midnight to early hours when the streets are empty. At convenient locations, the attackers ask the cab drivers to give them all they have in their pockets. Sometimes, they are little kind to those who comply, but first rob at gunpoint and then shoot those who do not or put up a resistance.

 Ziauddin Ahmed, 43, a Bangladeshi driver living in Queens was attacked on February 23.The passengers riding Ziauddin’s cab suddenly ordered him to stop, then robbed him of his hard-earned money and the cell phone. When he pleaded with them for returning only his favorite cell phone, they responded with scores of heavy punches and kicks on his face and other parts of his body wounding him seriously. Ziauddin filed a case with the city seeking justice.

 According to conservative estimates, over 30,000 immigrants from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh are driving cabs, many of whom as owners, in New York City for their living. The Yellow Cab is the most common and popular followed by Livery. Cab driving is the easiest and thus the first profession for hundreds of thousands of new immigrants who settle in the United States from various parts of the world.

 “But many are considering to leave this profession because their safety is at stake as a result of the strict enforcement of law that they cannot say no to anybody seeking to rent their cabs,” says Mohammad S. Alam, 44, former president of Bangladesh Yellow Cab Society. “We took to cab-driving because of its attraction as an independent profession. But now it seems we are being forced out of this profession in a planned way,” noted Arif Khan, 58, a Pakistani immigrant.

 After the recent killing of cab drivers, Mayor Giuliani has announced a budget of five million dollars for installation of bulletproof partition and surveillance camera in all cabs of New York City for prevention of attacks on the cab drivers. Yet, many taxi-drivers are worried about their safety and seriously thinking to switch their profession.