App-Based Autos: Karnataka Transport Dept Likely To Launch A Joint Ops With State Police

The Karnataka police may reportedly join state transport officials in following up on its ban on app-based autos with a joint operation.

The reports emerged after the Karnataka government ordered operators Ola, Uber and Rapido to cease operating auto rickshaws within three days on October 7. Today (October 10) happens to be the deadline for the operators to cease their auto services.

Karnataka Home Minister Araga Jnanendra was cited in an ET report stating that he would hold a meeting with top officials from the police and transport departments on Wednesday (October 12) to discuss the ways to regulate app-based aggregators.

Inflated Fare Called The Ban

According to the minister, citizens of the state have been complaining that the app-based autos charge much higher for a ride compared to their government-mandated counterparts. It is prudent to mention here that the government has fixed the minimum auto fare at INR 30 for the first two kilometres and INR 15 for every subsequent kilometre.

Jnanendra also added that the app-based aggregators were working in complete disregard of the government orders and regulations.

Karnataka’s Transport Minister B Sriramulu has already issued a warning to aggregator-based autos, stating that the authorities would seize the autos that were found to be operating on aggregators’ platforms despite the government order.

The Karnataka government issued a notice to Ola, Uber and Rapido stating that the practice of charging INR 100 for auto rides for even a distance of under two kilometres is an ‘illegal practice’. The notice added, “Auto services should be stopped, and customers should not be charged more than the government-prescribed fare.”

Media reports immediately after the notice was issued suggested that the operators would not be ceasing auto services.

Since then, Ola and Uber have reportedly reduced their fares to the government-prescribed auto fares in response to the notice. The companies had increased their minimum fare to INR 60 from INR 30 in light of rising fuel prices, which they have now reverted. 

A Rapido spokesperson had earlier told Inc42 that the company has received the notice and would respond to it within the stipulated time.

The transport department of Karnataka also stated that the three companies are violating the Karnataka On-Demand Transportation Technology Aggregators Rules, 2016. The government issues aggregator licences under the said norms. The licence is only valid for cabs and not for app-based autos, the transport department stated in the notice.

The country’s online taxi services market is slated to reach INR 55.15 Bn in size by FY25, per a report by ReportLinker. However, the market continues to be plagued by issues such as overcharging, surge pricing and booking cancellations, driving customer dissatisfaction.