Auto-rickshaw drivers in the city protested outside the Pune Divisional Commissioner’s office on Friday, voicing their opposition to the Maharashtra government’s recent policy decision to allow electric bike taxis in cities with a population exceeding 1 lakh. The drivers fear that this move will threaten their already struggling livelihood.
The decision to introduce electric bike taxis aims to provide affordable, eco-friendly transportation and create employment opportunities. However, auto drivers have complained it to be an unfair competition which would endanger their income source.
“The new policy would allow passenger transport in private category two-wheelers. This will create an uneven competition as bike taxis would operate with lesser fares than auto rickshaws. To maintain the available employment, bike taxis should not be allowed, and the issuance of new and currently running rickshaw licenses and new badges for rickshaw drivers should also be stopped,” said Nitin Pawar, General Secretary of the Rickshaw Panchayat.
“Our demand has been responded to by Chandrakant Pulkundwar, Pune Divisional Commissioner and president of the Metropolitan Integrated Authority (PUMTA), and we have been assured to have dialogue with the transport commissioner to find a solution,” added Pawar. PUMTA is a 20-member body formed by the Maharashtra government to address public transport issues in the Pune Metropolitan region.
Additionally, transport minister Pratap Sarnaik’s subsidy offer of Rs 10,000 to the sons of rickshaw drivers to help them join the bike taxi service has also been opposed. “The way the government is insisting on incentives for our son suggests that they want our family members to get into the same precarious employment conditions with a lack of job security and limited access to social welfare. We don’t want our next generations to get into this informal employment, else we aspire to get into a formal economy and live a dignified life,” said Siddharth Chavan, a participant in the protest.
“Pune, being a highly populated city, has already been struggling with persistent traffic jams and pollution. The number of vehicles in this city is currently over five million, adding new vehicles would worsen the traffic congestion. So, instead of new bikes, let us sustain our existing employment rather than create additional competition,” added Pawar.
“Pune is already investing in public transport by introducing the Metro, expanding PMPML bus service, and existing local railway network. With this, there are ample services available for customers to opt for. So, instead of introducing the bike taxi plan in Tier-1 cities, the government must consider the initial recommendations of the Ramnath Jha Committee to exclude Mumbai and Pune from the bike taxi policy due to their high traffic density and launch it in Tier-2 and rural areas,” added Chavan.