Uber, Rapido, Ola Auto Illegally Operating In Pune; RTO To Appeal Citizens Not To Use Illegal Transport Service
Sumit Singh
Pune, 25th April 2023: Several ride-hailing companies, including Uber, Rapido, and Ola Auto, have been found to be operating illegally in Pune, after the Regional Transport Authority denied their aggregator licenses for failing to comply with the ‘Motor Vehicle Aggregate Guidelines-2020’.
Despite this, the companies continue to offer services through their platforms, prompting authorities to appeal to citizens not to use illegal transport services.
Regional Transport Officer Ajit Shinde has confirmed that the licenses of four companies in the three-wheeler autorickshaw category were declared illegal, and they were denied permission to operate. Shinde has urged the public not to use the services of these companies and stressed that anyone can apply for permission, but these companies have not reapplied since their initial rejection.
The situation has raised concerns about who will take action against the ride-hailing companies that are openly operating illegally in the city.
According to one auto-rickshaw driver, around 80% of their business comes from these aggregator services, and offline bookings account for only 10 to 20% of their total revenue. With temperatures soaring up to 40 degrees Celsius, people prefer to use online booking services for their convenience.
Shailaja Jadhav (42) from Kothrud told Punekar News, “The authorities are not aware of the ground realities. Most people use these aggregator services to avoid confrontation with auto drivers.”
Another commuter, Bashir Sayyed (56), added, “Have the authorities made any alternative arrangements before appealing not to use aggregator services? What is the logic behind banning the services when they are for the convenience of people?”
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