Taxi operators agree to meters but seek clarifications first

Team Herald 

PANJIM: In what can be described a major breakthrough, the taxi union leaders on Wednesday said they are willing to install digital meters provided the clarifications they want are answered.

This can be seen as a change in stance given that the taxi operators, who have been protesting since April 6, had said that they will not even discuss the issue of installing meters until GoaMiles is scrapped.

In yet another major decision, the taxi union leaders have decided to refrain from protesting on the streets due to the rise in COVID cases but their taxis will continue to remain off the roads until their demands are met. They pointed out that they did this in the interest of the safety of their family members, who have also been protesting on the streets. They made it clear that this should not be seen as a victory for the government and reiterated that their agitation will continue in the form of their taxis being off the road, until their demands for GoaMiles being cancelled and an order banning taxi aggregators are met.

The taxi union leaders appealed to their colleagues not to take the law into their own hands and maintain the ‘peaceful nature’ of their protests. They added that if anyone of them gets COVID, the government will be blamed.

After being on strike for a fortnight, the taxi union leaders had met Transport Minister Mauvin Godinho and Transport Director Rajan Satardekar on Tuesday.

Speaking to the media on Wednesday, taxi union leaders such as Laxman (Bappa) Korgaonkar said there is a wrong perception that they have been against installing meters. He referred to how Tourism Minister Manohar (Babu) Ajgaonkar had claimed that because the taxi operators had refused to install meters, GoaMiles had made an entry.

Another taxi union leader said their only condition was that whatever instructions are given to them, have to come in writing and in accordance with the Motor Vehicle Act.

They said they are willing to install the meters but need some clarifications first about how it will be installed, how it will function, what happens in case there is a breakdown and other practical issues.

Asked if they are considering putting an app, as suggested by the Transport Minister, they said once the digital meters are installed, there is no reason for coming up with an app given that the digital meters will have all that an app can provide such as GPS feature, panic button etc.

The Transport Minister had earlier suggested adding a mobile-based application to the digital meters system that will allow customers to book the cabs at the airport.

The taxi operators also said the government should fix the rates from point to point and that a price hike should be allowed during the season.