Mumbai: The Maharashtra government is planning major policy changes to tighten regulation of bike taxi operations after facing embarrassment over its failed attempt to force app stores to remove ride-hailing platforms such as Uber, Ola and Rapido from their platforms.
The state now intends to make it mandatory for bike taxi operators to develop Maharashtra-specific applications and implement geo-fencing technology to ensure tighter control over their operations within the state, as reported by Hindustan Times.
The move comes just a day after the government was forced to reverse its decision directing Apple and Google to remove the aggregator apps over alleged violations linked to bike taxi services.
Bike Taxi Apps Restored On Apple & Google App Stores After Centre's Intervention
On Friday, Maharashtra’s cyber department had issued notices asking Apple and Google to delist the apps to stop bike taxi operations. The apps were briefly removed on Friday night but were restored on Saturday after intervention by the Central government.
According to transport department officials, the move inadvertently disrupted not just bike taxi services but also regular cab and auto-rickshaw bookings that operate through the same platforms.
Officials said the companies approached the Centre after the removal affected broader transportation services. Following this, the Central government reportedly contacted Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, after which the cyber department was instructed to restore the apps immediately.
The Maharashtra government has accused bike taxi operators of violating several provisions of the state’s bike taxi policy introduced in September last year.
According to officials, operators allegedly failed to comply with mandatory electric vehicle deployment norms, use of green-and-yellow commercial registration plates and installation of safety dividers between riders and passengers.
State's Reasons For Crackdown On Bike Taxi Apps
Authorities have also raised concerns over inadequate driver verification mechanisms, insufficient insurance coverage, lack of women’s safety measures and weak emergency response systems.
“Rash and negligent driving commonly associated with such bike taxi operations poses a substantial risk to public safety,” a transport department official said, as quoted by HT.
To strengthen enforcement, the state now plans to revise the existing policy and introduce state-specific digital controls. Officials said aggregators will be required to create Maharashtra-exclusive bike taxi applications linked to licence numbers approved by the state government.
The apps will also have to be geo-fenced to ensure operations remain restricted and traceable within Maharashtra.
Govt To Hold Meeting With Operators Over New Rules
State Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik said the government would hold discussions with operators later this week to understand their concerns regarding the implementation of the rules.
“We will not compromise on safety norms or dilute the policy. However, if operators face difficulties in replacing existing bikes with electric vehicles and seek more time, we can consider it,” Sarnaik said, according to the report.
He added that illegal operations would not be tolerated and operators would also be required to separate bike taxi services from their larger transport platforms to avoid disruptions like those witnessed during last week’s app removal episode.
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