[drmohitg]

Have all the rest of these companies which have come up in the last few months in the Taxi market carried out proper checks and are following all the rules properly? It's little hard to believe that only Uber was flouting these norms. And if not then it's high time the authorities take a look at these other ventures too before some similar incident takes place in anther taxi belonging to a different service provider.

[sdp1975]

“It was on our file and is a perfectly legal document, given the fact that it was forwarded to us by the local police in response to our request for verification,” said a Transport Department official, dismissing Mr. Bassi’s claim that the certificate had been forged by Yadav and submitted directly to the Transport Department.


Source : http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/...?homepage=true

This is expected to create major inconvenience for commuters. In what appears to be a knee-jerk reaction, the transport department of Delhi government came out with a notification that said only six cab services - Easy Cab, Mega Cab, Meru Cab, Chanson Cab, Yo Cab and Air Cab - had the licence to operate radio taxis. The notification was issued soon after Uber had been banned.

A rough estimate showed that over 20 cab services - including the popular Taxi-for-Sure, Ola, Quick Cabs, Delhi Cab, Wyn and Cosy, besides Uber - may have to stop operations. This would also mean that thousands of drivers will be out of work. Uber alone is estimated to have had 3,000 drivers on its roster.


Source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/c...w/45422754.cms

[autobahnjpr]

UBER has been called the "a****le problem of silicon valley". I used to wonder why but this incident has clarified the adjective. First of all, the driver can vanish by just deleting the app which is a grave process flaw and there are no GPS installed in the car. Second, the passenger has no say in saying that he/she has been safely dropped and the journey has finished. In this case, the driver punched that the passenger has been dropped. Thirdly, they are not ready to accept any blame. they operate in very opaque manner. you do not know whom to contact in case of any wrong doing.
I have been subject to such nastiness when by chance i used the app to find out if i can book a taxi for later in the day. i just looked at the availability of cabs nearby and quickly cancelled the operation when i found that it cannot be done. I got a call from a driver and then minimum fare was deducted even though i did not ride the cab at all. This is the kind of arrogance this company has.
For the benefit of others let me say the UBER is also banned in Berlin, if it balms the heart a little.

[oxymoron]

Originally Posted by benbsb29

You really believe this will curb the problem?!! So, if this was an auto driver in question, we ban autos across India altogether?!
When a child was raped by a PE teacher at a Bangalore school, should they have banned the school or PE altogether? Similarly, i can draw parallels with other incidents as well, but i believe i have made my point.

What is required is to ensure harsh punishments which deter people from performing such acts, and not dilly-dally with knee-jerk reactions such as these.



Agree.

if drawing parallel is the only way to justify then no stern action can ever be taken. It may be harsh on Uber but this will help keeping everyone in check now. All Cab companies will tow the line and i bet they must be doing all sort of background check now. Uber is an international company and they should not have double standards when it comes to following process for scrutinizing drivers. They do it in US so should be in India, now please dont jump on me that there is no standard system in India, every geography has its own challenges and if you have to do business (Tap the market), shortcuts on processes are not acceptable.

No crime can be justified and hence wherever initiatives are being taken to curtail it is a good step forward and these steps will become references for future judgments/ actions.

[zenren]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Have all the rest of these companies which have come up in the last few months in the Taxi market carried out proper checks and are following all the rules properly? It's little hard to believe that only Uber was flouting these norms. And if not then it's high time the authorities take a look at these other ventures too before some similar incident takes place in anther taxi belonging to a different service provider.

Ban is not just for Uber, it is for all such companies that are not registered with the transport department. Uber has not done this and hence there is no reason why they should be allowed to continue their operations after such a fiasco.

the transport department of Delhi government came out with a notification that said only six cab services - Easy Cab, Mega Cab, Meru Cab, Chanson Cab, Yo Cab and Air Cab - had the licence to operate radio taxis. The notification was issued soon after Uber had been banned.

Confirming the blacklisting of Uber, special commissioner (transport) Kuldeep Gangar said, "Uber misled the commuter about the nature of the taxi service offered...the transport department has banned all activities relating to providing any transport service by www.uber.com with immediate effect." For the others too, the ban began with immediate effect. "Any taxi service providing such services without a licence will be prosecuted," the department said.

Uber is not registered as a radio taxi company with the transport department. Delhi government allows radio taxis to operate in the city, provided they register and get a permit from the transport department to ply in the city. Tourist taxis need a permit as well as an all-India taxi permit to ply outside Delhi. Uber had neither.

Under the rules, a radio taxi operator can offer services only if it has vehicles that are fitted with a GPS device and have verified the credentials of the driver, including the driving licence and PSV badge. Post the Nirbhaya incident in 2012, the Delhi government had made it mandatory to have GPS fitted in all commercial vehicles, which is yet to be implemented by the transport department.

source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/c...w/45422754.cms

Originally Posted by benbsb29

When a child was raped by a PE teacher at a Bangalore school, should they have banned the school or PE altogether? Similarly, i can draw parallels with other incidents as well, but i believe i have made my point.

If the culprit was already a known offender with criminal record and the school still employed him knowing the risk or ignoring background verification process, then the school would also be equally responsible in such a case and should face legal action.

[DCEite]

Is the Ban only in Delhi or does it cover NCR also (Noida/Gzb/Fbd) ?

I still see TaxiForSure taxis in APP at Noida region.

[batterylow]

And apparently the background verification of the driver had already been done by the police.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/...?homepage=true

So, who are we going to blame now?

[adroit]

I think its a good move to put a ban on Uber as it was needed to set some example to other operators before taking things for granted. Its horrible to know that Police could not get hold of Uber guys before afternoon as they dont provide any contact number or office address anywhere in communication. Police had to call a cab and then told the driver to guide them till Uber office. wow.

[raghu.t.k]

Isnt the certificate "technically correct". Since in the previous instance he was arrested and tried, but he was not convicted for the same. In this case its the failing of the prosecution and the police to ensure the guilt is proven in court beyond doubt.

Else for the number of false accusations around, it is not fair to have the same listed in the certificate. Then all that is need to pull a innocent guy's career down is for a female to file a rape case as in the lines of 498A. That said, there could be a register for specific jobs, and they could be barred/alerted from taking that job for a specific period or life. The court and the police also need to take the blame in this incident. The failure to properly investigate and ensure the guilt is proven, and the fact that the cases are prolonged is what encourages the culprits to walk free.

In my opinion, looks like the Delhi police would blame everyone else, rather than introspect on what went wrong and how it could be corrected. I agree its not easy, but in this case, they are the professionals and need to know their job. Earlier it was the sun film that was blamed, and got it banned, next to my knowledge its now Uber. Banning is not the solution. How come they never banned the buses is a real suprise!! Would a BGC by Uber have raised the flag, I doubt.

[jeepster_chd]

A few observations:

Since the beginning of its operations in India, Uber has appeared to be over ambitious- more cabs, different types of cabs, more cities, lucrative offers. It seems they were on an expansion spree. And in the mad rush to be all over with in no time they just ignored the laws, procedures and their responsibilities. The result is in front of all of us to see. They hired a criminal who drove a taxi, a taxi that didn’t conformed to Govt. norms that make it mandatory to have a GPS system on board. A woman is raped and the fast Uber ride meets an early dead end.

Secondly, our laws are such that it is difficult to get a private car registered whereas it is easier to run a flaw-ridden cab service without getting caught our punished. I have never seen a radio cab being stopped at a Naka or police check post for checking of documents and must-haves. May be the police personal themselves are not aware of the must-haves and things to ask for from radio cab drivers.

Thirdly, what I am now going to state may invite the flak of fellow bhpians but this is what I feel. In the name of modernity and women rights we seem to have gone overboard. For a girl to get drunk and hire a cab at may be 10 in the night and then just doze off in the back seat is like inviting trouble. I am not against girls going out or having drinks. But I am of the view that when we know that world around is bad then why can’t we at least take our own responsibility if of not others. Drink responsibly.

[SilentEngine]

Originally Posted by sdp1975

“It was on our file and is a perfectly legal document, given the fact that it was forwarded to us by the local police in response to our request for verification,” said a Transport Department official, dismissing Mr. Bassi’s claim that the certificate had been forged by Yadav and submitted directly to the Transport Department.


Source : http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/...?homepage=true

So now we have one government department blaming the other.

This is what Uber's statement to police:

The company’s regional manager, NCR, Gagan Bhatia, who was questioned by the police, reportedly admitted that they did not conduct any background checks or police verification of the drivers.

http://indianexpress.com/article/ind...blames-system/

It's quite opposite to what they claim in their website:

Wherever you are around the world, Uber is committed to connecting you to the safest ride on the road. That means setting the strictest safety standards possible, then working hard to improve them every day. The specifics vary depending on what local governments allow, but within each city we operate, we aim to go above and beyond local requirements to ensure your comfort and security - what we’re doing in the US is an example of our standards around the world.

They definitely did not go above and beyond local requirements (whatever that means).

The move to blanket-ban all web-based providers seems a knee-jerk reaction, but it should at least make our lawmakers think about solving this by bringing all these providers under same rule.

[amitk26]

Originally Posted by jeepster_chd

They hired a criminal who drove a taxi, a taxi that didn’t conformed to Govt. norms that make it mandatory to have a GPS system on board. A

Uber had lapses no doubt they should have some sort of alert system when GPS tracked taxi is going astray from the defined path however in this particular case the said criminal was acquitted by court of law.
It seems Police and media is suggesting that people who are just accused of some criminal offence should never be employed again anywhere even after lawful aquittal this is a very dangerous proposition.

The failure in reality is of the legal system who acquitted the criminal in first place based on out of court settlement between the criminal and woman involved in previous case . In my limited understanding of law out of court settlement is possible only in civil cases and not in the case of criminal offences.
so surely prosecution / police must have dropped the charges or diluted them allowing him to come out.

[tsk1979]

I think there are 2 issues here
1. Did UBER verify driver?
Yes they did. Transport department did issue a certificate

Is UBER Authorized to operate?
Well this is a separate issue. If we go by the rules, any web based service is illegal. For example, if I use facebook group to hitch a ride by paying money, even that is illegal.
Current framework does not have the concept of this type of booking.

So not just uber, any service like airbnb is also illegal.

Infact, this is the bone of contention.
Uber is not a cab company. Its just a payment processor and an intermediary which connects the service provider and consumer.

This model of business is not recognized.

This extends to many other things. Our laws are outdated. For example Amazon Tax fiasco with KA govt.

OLA/UBER/TAXI-FOR SURE all are same. Just a payment processor which connects the service provider with consumer.

Is banning them right?
Yes, going by law its right

Is banning them going to serve any purpose or make things safer?
No, its not. It will simply bring us to 20rs/km kind of taxi fares. Only corporations can own taxies. The concept of individual taxi driver reaching out to customers is gone.

But then, we allow Auto drivers to solicit customers. Somehow, just because its done using a smartphone, its illegal.
How logical is that?

What can be done to fix it?
Well, for starters, a rule can be made that any TAXI should have an inbuilt tracker. Any person soliciting passengers, whether on a bus stop, outside a railway station, on facebook, on uber, on OLA or whatever, needs to have an always active GPS tracker so the cab can be tracked at any time.

Its the job of the regulating authority to do that.
For example, I can sell stuff on ebay, but did I get the stuff by smuggling from abroad or after paying duty is not ebay's responsibility. Its mine, and its the job of the sales tax/customs/excise dept etc., to ensure that I am not smuggling.

Just like if I have a push cart on the road side and I am selling smuggled goods. Do we ban roads?

[Shivank]

So, Uber is banned. Why? Because they do not comply with the rules and regulations, right?

Lets forget the unfortunate rape incident for a while. It may be stupid on my part, but I find this whole Delhi Police vs Uber affair comically surprising. When a company does not meet a pre-requisite set of government regulations, how can it be operating in the country in the first place?

Did the goverment not do a 'background' check of Uber before? Can anyone, be it a cab provider or an app that directly affects the safety of people can run just like that in our country?

I am not advocating for Uber either as I believe the ban will serve as a good lesson for them and many other cab operators for sure. But then, if the rapist was a first time offender, what would the government do about it? I am very much interested in that part of the argument...

[asinghal]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

I think there are 2 issues here
1.
Infact, this is the bone of contention.
===============
Is banning them right?
Yes, going by law its right

The difference between Uber (and similar service provider) and a marketplace like Amazon/Fkart etc is that in Uber, the buyer (rider) has no choice of seller (driver/car). Uber decided which seller is providing the service , so in true sense they are part of the decision of seller selection.