App-based companies get court injunction order on Transport department notice

BENGALURU: App-based cab aggregators like Ola, Uber and Rapido, which were under the scanner of the Transport Department for excessive minimum fares on autorickshaw rides, have secured an injunction order from a city court against the department’s notice to cease such operations by Tuesday.

Over the last six days, the aggregators and the Transport Department have engaged in a tussle with the latter issuing a notice to asked the former to stop their services. Many commuters had complained that autorickshaws hired through the aggregators were charging very high evenfor short distances.

Though the minimum fare is Rs 30 for the 2 km, and Rs 15 for every kilometre thereafter, Ola and Uber autos were charging a minimum of Rs 100. Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya had also raised the issue with Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai.

On Tuesday, Transport Commissioner T M H Kumar responded to media inquiries about the department’s actions on app-based aggregators, saying, “We have sent the responses of Ola and Uber to our legal team. Autos will not be impounded until the deadline. Ola and Uber have secured a court order not to take any action. We will proceed based on the opinion of the legal cell. We are not going to give licence to app-based aggregators for autos. The companies have asked us to allow them to collect convenience fees from passengers. We will not take any action against individual auto drivers, but against the companies violating rules. So far, we have not decided on two-wheeler taxi services and other vehicles.”

On the other hand, city autorickshaw unions are all set to launch their own ‘Namma Yathri’ app on November 1, coinciding with Kannada Rajyotsava.