PANJIM: The onus for the two-day stir by tourist taxi operators and its likely fall-out on tourism now seems to be on the government with people asking, ‘Who allowed Olacabs to begin services in Goa?’
The reason being its silence over commencement of a taxi service in the State right in the midst of negotiations with taxi and tour operators over ‘illegal business’ being conducted at the cost of local stakeholders.
Both the Transport department and Tourism department are under severe fire for not stepping in time to control the situation and for allowing the already tense scenario to escalate further.
Both Calangute MLA Michael Lobo and Benaulim MLA Caitano Silva seem to have more ammunition to fire, more so at the tourism ministry than before.
Lobo has demanded an inquiry into the entire issue of the taxi stir and the hand behind allowing Olacabs to set shop and services in the State. He has taken a dig at his Saligao MLA and Tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar for the disaster.
“If the Transport department and Tourism department have washed their hands off then there has to be somebody who has accorded blessings to the agency to begin the cool cab services,” Lobo stated.
“I demand an inquiry into this matter and the government must come clear on this matter as to how an illegal business was allowed to start and no action taken despite the fact that no permissions had been granted,” he said.
Caitano Silva, MLA from Benaulim on the other hand has shot at the Congress and BJP governments for repeatedly cold shouldering taxi operators and allowing outside agencies to trample on locals, in this case tourist taxi operators.
Silva has gone a step further to state that while tourism related businesses charge separate rates during peak season, that taxi operators are bound by flat rates and are blamed all the time in case they charge beyond the prescribed rates. “Why two yardsticks,” he asked.
Silva agreed with Lobo that the present government was slow to act against Olacabs but went further to say that the previous government also did nothing for local taxi operators.
“There is somebody involved in getting in Olacabs from the backdoor,” Silva said, adding that he would let the matter rest following an assurance from the government that no outside taxi operators would be permitted to operate in Goa.
