Pune RTA Turns Down Pending Ola And Uber’s Application For Aggregator Licenses

The Pune Regional Transport Authority (RTA) has officially rejected the pending applications of Ola and Uber for the aggregator license at the Pune Regional Transport Office (RTO).

The decision was made following a meeting convened by District Collector Suhas Diwase, along with other regional transport officials, on Monday (March 11).  

The RTO issued an official letter the day after the meeting, rejecting the applications submitted by ANI Technologies Pvt Ltd (Ola’s parent company) and Uber India Systems Pvt Ltd, as per The Indian Express report.

The letter stated that the RTA previously denied both companies the aggregator license for light vehicles due to document discrepancies. 

On Monday, after reviewing the meeting, transport authorities concluded that the documents submitted by both ride-hailing companies did not meet the standards outlined in the central government’s Motor Vehicles Aggregators’ Guidelines, 2020.

As per the guidelines, if an aggregator is dissatisfied with an order from a competent authority, they can appeal to the state government within 30 days of receiving the order.

An RTO official has confirmed that both the companies have been operating illegally, and their operations must be stopped. “Senior authorities will make further decisions, and the companies have received 30 days to appeal to The State Transport Appellate Tribunal (SAT),” Sanjeev Bhor, RTO official told The Indian Express.

Since 2014, approximately 45,000 to 50,000 cabs, including Ola and Uber, have been running in the city without licenses. Complaints from cab drivers about rising fares remained unaddressed due to the lack of a state policy, causing uncertainty.

In 2023, the transport authority denied licenses for both companies to operate autos in the city, but they persist in providing auto services.

Considerably, Ola and Uber dominate the online cab aggregator space in India. As per a report, the India Taxi Market is projected to reach $38.90 Bn by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 13.55% from its estimated size of $20.61 Bn in 2024.

Meanwhile, ANI Technologies Pvt Ltd, the parent entity of cab-hailing startup Ola, managed to cut down its consolidated net loss by 49.2% to INR 772.2 Cr in the financial year ended March 31, 2023, from INR 1,522.3 Cr in FY22. 

The cab-hailing business reported a 63% increase in sales to INR 1,987.5 Cr in FY23 from INR 1,220 Cr in FY22. Its net loss declined 64.8% to INR 1,082.5 Cr during the year under review from INR 3,082.4 Cr in FY22. This decline in net loss was also reflected in the consolidated numbers of the parent company.