Kerala: No law to monitor online taxis

Kochi: Transport department expressed helplessness in taking action against app-based taxi services like Uber and Ola on a complaint in the absence of law. Though the department received eight complaints so far, it has not taken any action as there is no law governing the service, says a reply under the RTI. In the response that Kalamassery native Jiyas Jamal got, the department made it clear that there was no law to monitor the activities of app-based services. The transport department claimed that they had forwarded the complaints to the Ernakulam RTO.

Commuters in cities especially Kochi are increasingly relying on taxi-hailing apps now. Uber itself is boasting of more than 10,000 drivers in Kochi city alone. They also claim that every week five percent new drivers are joining either Uber or Ola. With the growth of app-based services, complaints are also piling up before the cops as well as motor vehicle department. The other day a lady filed a sexual abuse case against a Uber driver and the cops registered a complaint.

Earlier the department had warned the Uber drivers that strict action would be taken against them if they opt surge pricing. However Uber and Ola are still going ahead with 'surge pricing'. The government in its RTI reply also clarified that complaints about pricing also cannot be considered due to the lack of law. Interestingly the Union government is still working on a bill to regulate the cab aggregators.