Tourists in Delhi may soon enjoy rides on rented two-wheelers
Tourists in Delhi may soon enjoy rides on rented two-wheelers with the Delhi government's transport department firming up a scheme to issue licences for "rent-a-bike" services in the city, officials said.
A presentation of the draft scheme is likely to be made before the transport minister next week for further discussions, a senior transport department officer said.
"The presentation was scheduled for earlier this month but it was postponed. Now it will be held next week. The draft proposal for the bike rental service will require the approval of the State Transport Authority (STA)," he said.
The proposed scheme stipulates issuance of licences to applicants with minimum five bikes, necessary permits and insurance cover, and sound financial condition to ensure maintenance of the vehicles and efficient management of the establishment, the officer said.
Under the scheme, licences will be issued to eligible bike operators by the STA to engage in the rental business.
The applicants for proposed "rent-a-bike" scheme must also have the necessary facilities for the housing, maintenance and repair of vehicles, sanitary block, reception room and 24x7 telephone connectivity.
Eligible bike operators will be awarded the license for five years. The licence fee under the scheme is yet to be decided, officials said.
The bike operators will also be required to maintain records of hiring along with particulars of hirer. Separate records will have to be maintained for Indian and foreign nationals, as per the draft of scheme.
The licence holder under this scheme will collect the hire charges from a foreign national or NRI only in foreign exchange.
The licensing authority will have the power to cancel or suspend the licence of an operator if it fails to comply with the provisions of the scheme, including non-maintenance of bikes and misbehaviour with customers.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)