It’s always interesting to see what happens when governments try to hold big companies accountable. Over the last month, about 300 cases against Ola, Uber and Rapido have been filed by users in Bengaluru because they were charged significantly inflated prices for minimum distance rides (Rs. 100 instead of Rs. 30). On October 6th, the Transport Department of the Government of Karnataka responded by declaring the practice as illegal and issuing a notice for these companies to stop providing auto services in Bengaluru.
The companies seemed to have disregarded the notice, not producing the compliance report demanded by the government or attempting to halt the services. The Karnataka Transport Department is seeking input from its legal advisors on how to proceed if the situation persists. At the same time, multiple Auto Unions have decided to launch their own smartphone apps with more justified pricing (eg. Rs. 40 minimum). Reported to have support from Infosys’ Nandan Nilekani, the Autorickshaw Drivers Union (ARDU) will be launching “Namma Yatri” on November 1st. However, the Regional Transport Office (RTO) of Karnataka are unable to grant a license to the app since there is no clear process to register an aggregator. At the same time, another Auto Union called Peace Auto has discussed working on such an app called “Rook”.
A storm has finally seemed to have hit these extremely lucrative ridesharing companies in India. The government, ridesharing apps, and auto unions seem to be gearing up in different directions. Let the games begin!
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