35 vehicles were booked by authorities in the first few hours on Wednesday morning
After Delhi, it is the turn of Hyderabad to ban Uber. Days after a young woman was raped allegedly by a driver contracted to Uber in New Delhi, the Telangana government has launched a special campaign to weed out cab operators in the city who violate various provisions of the law. The government says it is part of its larger effort to bring taxi services under regulation and ensure safety of women.
At least 35 vehicles had been booked and seven seized by the transport authorities in just the first couple of hours of checks on Wednesday morning.
B. Venkateswarulu, Joint Commissioner of Transport with the Telangana government, told NDTV that they want to bring all such cab services under the regulatory framework. The ban on Uber was imposed after a notification from the Centre. The transport commissioner said Uber did not have license or permission to operate in Telangana.
"There are about 20,000 cabs registered with us. That means about half a dozen services with 100-150 cars, all with GPRS. But there are several other fleets that may be using web-based apps and not registered with us,'' he said.
Sudhakar's vehicle, registered as a taxi, was one among those seized by the transport department.
"I am not using it as a taxi but as my private vehicle,'' he insisted, though he admitted that he had violated the law by manipulating the number plate of a vehicle, that was originally registered as a taxi.
For the transport authorities and also the police, these kind of vehicles are also a big concern. The case of Abhaya', a software engineer who was raped earlier this year, after she hired a car, that she presumed to be a taxi, but was not registered as one, is just one example.
A recently developed mobile app, used by both the transport department and the police, enables the officer to punch in the taxi registration number to instantaneously find out all relevant details about the vehicle, including the contact numbers of the registered owner. This is also linked to whether the vehicle has been involved in any police case earlier. Similarly the database for drivers too is linked to their previous record.
Women in Hyderabad are hoping a fool-proof security system would make them feel safe.
"After the Delhi incident, I feel that my organisation should send a security guard along with me, specially if I am the last person to be dropped, to make me feel safe,'' said a software employee.
Some suggested that the She-Taxi service launched recently, where women are driving the car, should be pro-actively encouraged to become a big network. But unfortunately, it has not really taken off.
The skepticism was clearly reflected in the statement of a young engineer who said, "We don't feel safe at all. Just hope and pray every time that we should reach safely. Everything depends on God only.''