It was only right on the part of taxi owners from Pernem to foil their attempts. The solution found to the problem is contradictory. The news that the airport will come into existence at Mopa is not a recent discovery. The government had a clear idea of what would be required on the airport the moment they signed the contract with GMR company. There is a mention of the taxi services as well as the possible generation of revenue through taxi parking in the contract which means the government was fully aware of the presence of taxi service at the airport. Considering this, it makes no sense to create such a confusion now when flights are almost ready to take-off from the airport. And there is a big plot behind this which Pernem’s taxi operators realised at the right time. A steering committee for the airport was formed and a decision regarding the employment policy was also taken during a meeting. As per the decision, the first preference was supposed to be given to the project-hit villages, then the taluka and then the rest of Goa. The minute report of this meeting was finalised which was also approved by the government. It is questionable that the government seems to have forgotten this procedure right at the time when the airport is about to become operational. If they were to provide taxi services, then the first preference should have been given to the taxi owners from the villages which were affected by the project and then to the operators from Pernem followed by the rest of Goa. This is not being done only to rob Pednekars of their rightful employment. Taxi App is just an excuse. In fact, there is no direct connection between the taxi services to be provided at Manohar International Airport and Taxi App. They both are independent subjects but are presented together only to mislead Pernem locals. There is no doubt that the taxi services in the State are in need of discipline and an app is required for them to be monitored. The government should take further steps by taking the taxi operators into confidence.
They should also think of providing other taxi services based on apps to create a competitive environment but to say that the app is needed specifically for Mopa Airport is not right. Most of the big city airports in the country have prepaid taxi counters put up outside. The same airport has app-based taxi services. The same airport also has black-yellow taxi services. All these services are operational simultaneously. Of course there is stiff competition within them as well but it is not unhealthy. The passengers landing at the airport have multiple options to choose from the services which are suitable for him and his budget. And it is very much possible to set-up such an arrangement at the Manohar International Airport. If the government limits the taxi services only to the app then in a way, they are also taking away the right of the passengers to have multiple options. More than that, this is also an attempt to just wrap-up the decision taken by the steering committee. This will set a wrong precedent. As it is, the government projects are facing stiff opposition. People from the rest of Goa opposed the Mopa airport, however Pernem locals stayed with the project. There were protests, agitations to shut down the work of the airport and now when it is all set to become operational, an excuse such as an app-based service would not be enough. The then Minister of Tourism Manohar Ajgaonkar had claimed that the GoaMiles is a government app. Now why does the same government come up with another? The people deserve to know the answer to that as well. Even if the passengers came as far as from Sindhudurg, Ratnagiri, Belgaum, Karwar, Ankola, Kumtha the first right to attain employment belongs to the villagers and Pernem locals. The taxi-app chaos by the government makes no sense when there is so much else that needs attention. The government can definitely start Kadamba bus services that go from mainstream villages and cities to the airport but the taxi counter has to be mandatory. The state of taxi services in the State and the app-based taxi service at the Airport are two different questions which demand two separate answers. It is to nobody’s benefit to mix these issues and mislead people. If the government is truly bothered then they should help the youth from Pernem to buy taxis at subsidized rates so that they can operate this business on their own.
