New Delhi:
A day after Uber was banned in Delhi because of a rape case involving one of its drivers, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh wrote to state governments, suggesting that any taxi service that is not registered should be blacklisted.
However, Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari said a ban on Web-based taxi services like Uber is not the solution to ensuring the safety of passengers. "New developments are taking place in transport systems through electronics," he said, pointing out that the move against Uber is like " Banning the railways for train accidents, buses for bus accidents."
Delhi has banned more than 10 firms that provide taxis but are not registered with the government.
Internet-based taxi services like Uber and Ola, which are not new in India, are not regulated, the government said, without offering an explanation for why it had not intervened earlier. Many point out that a ban is an over-reaction that will leave thousands of drivers jobless and deprive urban commuters - especially women - of the sort of service that allows their journeys to be tracked online via an app.
Though Uber is meant to offer that basic protection, the driver who has been arrested for raping a woman passenger on Friday in Delhi switched off his phone, ensuring that he went off Uber's radar. His car was not fitted with GPS. Uber had not verified his police record.
The aggregate of those sizeable lapses resulted in a horrific attack on young woman and those guilty must be held responsible, said some law-makers in parliament, where the case was discussed. But many pointed out that existing Indian laws are outdated and obvious holes must be plugged, but doing away with app-based services is unwise.