The letter was sent on Tuesday following the public notice issued by the government asking them to stop bike taxi services immediately. According to the government, bikes are not legally allowed to operate for commercial purposes.
ET has reviewed a copy of the IAMAI letter.
The industry body, which represents companies like Ola, Uber, Rapido, Zomato and Swiggy, argued that the central government’s motor vehicle aggregator guidelines issued in 2020 do encourage the use of non-transport vehicles, that is vehicles with white number plates, to be used by aggregators, at the behest of the state government.
The Delhi government is yet to release the final version of the draft aggregator policy which has been in the works for more than a year now.
“In the absence of such a prohibition, there is a lack of clarity on the position of the government of NCT of Delhi on this clause. We request that the Govt of NCT of Delhi consider this clause….and provide clarification on the way forward,” the IAMAI said, referring to the central government’s draft guidelines.
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Following the public notice issued by the government on Monday, transport minister Kailash Gahlot said that companies can apply for a new licence under the new policy that is under the works.“The aggregator policy for two-wheeler, three-wheeler and four-wheeler is in its final stage and will be rolled out soon, helping them to apply for grant of licence under the new scheme,” he said on Twitter.
The Delhi government in its draft aggregator policy is thinking of legalising bike taxis if the vehicle used is an EV. The aggregator policy covers all tech companies, ranging from ecommerce to food delivery and ride-hailing businesses.
“We understand that the Govt of NCT of Delhi is currently considering such a draft scheme that may cover aggregation of bike taxis,” IAMAI said in its letter. “In the absence of policies notified under either Section 93 or Section 66 of the Act, we request that no coercive steps be taken against vehicle owners or digital platforms and a stakeholder consultation be organised at the earliest to discuss the way forward.”
IAMAI has also argued against the strong push for electrification by the Delhi government. The industry body said that this will impact the livelihood of gig-economy workers.
“In the nascent commercial bike aggregation sector, bike owners operate on food delivery, ecommerce and ride-share platforms interchangeably throughout the day and any restrictions on their ability to access one sector will negatively impact both their economic opportunities and the state’s electrification goals,” it said in the letter.
