Bengaluru: The Karnataka Transport Department has issued show-cause notices on Tuesday, August 11 to major ride-hailing aggregators Ola, Uber, Rapido and Namma Yatri for allegedly violating government-prescribed fare regulations.
The action follows complaints from taxi and driver associations that passengers were being charged fares higher than those notified by the government in its February 3, 2024 order. The associations alleged that some aggregators were calculating fares based on factors such as travel duration instead of strictly following the notified fare structure.
Driver organisations had raised the issue during a meeting with the Transport Department on August 4 and demanded stringent action against the companies. They urged the department to direct aggregators to collect fares strictly according to the rates prescribed by the government.
The Kempegowda International Airport Taxi Owners and Drivers Welfare Association had also sought legal action against Ola, Uber and other aggregators, alleging that the companies were not adhering to the notified fare system and were instead using time-based calculations to determine passenger charges.
The Karnataka Drivers Federation had earlier submitted a representation to the government on March 16. Its state president, Narayanaswamy, alleged that aggregators, including Ola, Uber and Rapido, were not ensuring that drivers received earnings in accordance with the government-prescribed fare structure.
In the notices, the Transport Department directed the companies to comply with the notified fares and provisions of Rule 9 of the Karnataka On-Demand Transportation Technology Aggregators Rules, 2016.
The aggregators have been given seven days from the date of receiving the notices to submit written explanations. The department warned that failure to respond within the stipulated period would be treated as if no explanation had been offered.
It further stated that subsequent action would be initiated under Rule 11 of the 2016 regulations if the companies failed to comply. Transport Department sources said no response had been received from the aggregators so far following the issuance of the notices.
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