Team Herald
PANJIM/MOPA: The government may be “app-ing” the ante to get a taxi app ready by January 1 but there is not a single taxi that is linked to that app. The cabinet ministers have figured this out, which is why there is talk of Kadamba buses being pressed into service to get international passengers from Mopa to their hotels.
“KTC has been asked to make available eight buses every one hour to ferry tourists to preferred destinations,” Tourism Minister Rohan Khaunte said.
But this is not just about tourists landing at Mopa. Anyone, including locals, who download the app to even take them for sightseeing, to restaurants, stations as well as the airport, will not get a single car to fetch them.
It’s just like you have a food delivery app and want to order fish curry and rice, but there are no restaurants that the app has to offer for online orders. Pernem taluka alone has 800 taxi owners and operators but none are prepared to join the app at the moment.
One of the taxi operators while speaking to Tourism Minister Khaunte said that the app-based taxi service will open up the entire taxi business of the Mopa Airport to outsiders and big fish in the transportation industry, which will finish the businesses of the local taximen.
The President of All Goa Tourists Taxi Owners Association, Chetan Kamat, confirmed that taxi association has exhorted the taxi owners from Pernem to come out in large numbers and join their movement against the app-based taxis, while warning them that the app-based taxis at the new airport in Mopa too will also finish their business.
“Tourism Department calling the shots for Transport department itself is objectionable. In fact, we feel that the Government is trying to covertly get taxi operators on board the app in the name of registration of taxis for Mopa airport,” Kamat said.
The North Goa Taxi Association Owners spokesperson Bappa Korgaokar has literally put up a wall against any mention of app-based taxis. “We have nothing to do with apps and no one will register under that. We are very clear,” he said.
Assistant Director of Transport Francisco Vaz said no certified taxis are ready to service the tourists coming to the new airport, while the requirement is almost 600 to 650 taxis. The tourism minister has also informed that Mopa will need 600 to 650 taxis to ferry tourists to various parts of Goa.
