All Assam Cab Mazdoor Sangha has announced the closure of its services in protest against allegations of harassment of taxi drivers by taxi collectors.
Online taxi aggregators Ola and Uber reportedly suspended service in the city of Guwahati on February 1st. According to a report by The Meghalayan, 18,000 taxi operators will stop offering Ola and Uber services. Additionally, more than 16,000 Rapido cyclists are out of action starting today.
All Assam Cab Mazdoor Sangha has announced the termination of its service in protest of allegations of harassment of cab drivers by taxi aggregators.
“Ola and Uber started operations in Assam in 2015. In the first year, they gave us good incentives. But in later days they started harassment of cab drivers. They started taking 40 to 60 percent of the commission from cab drivers per trip. This is not reasonable,” All Assam Cab Mazdoor Sangha general secretary Jyotish Deka said.
“They are also taking the dynamic price from us. If we pay such a commission, nothing is left for us. We work for 18-20 hours. We have to pay installments in the banks and finance companies for loans against vehicles and maintain our family also,” Deka added.
Currently, taxi services are provided by two local taxi operators: Pei India and AM2 in Guwahati City.
All Assam Cab One of the main requirements of Mazdoor Sangha is to ensure the safety of taxi drivers on duty. “According to the 2020 Vehicle Assembly Guidelines, taxi drivers must be provided with health insurance and reserve funds. However, they do not meet this point. We also demand the safety of taxi drivers on duty.”
Deca said he has repeatedly submitted to the Minister of Transportation, the Minister of Transport, and the Deputy Commissioner. But there was no answer.
