Maharashtra To Revise Bike Taxi Policy After U-Turn on App Ban; Check Details Here

The Maharashtra government has decided to revise its approach towards regulating bike taxi services after withdrawing its earlier directive asking Apple and Google to remove ride-hailing apps from their platforms. The state now plans to introduce stricter policy measures aimed at strengthening oversight of bike taxi operations. Authorities are considering making it compulsory for operators to create Maharashtra-specific applications and enforce geo-fencing technology to regulate services within the state. The move comes amid allegations that aggregator platforms such as Uber, Ola and Rapido have been operating bike taxi services while violating multiple regulatory norms laid down by the state government and transport authorities across Maharashtra.

The fresh policy push came barely a day after the state government faced criticism over its attempt to curb unauthorised bike taxi operations. On Friday, Maharashtra’s cyber department had issued notices to Apple and Google, instructing them to remove Uber, Ola and Rapido applications from their app stores to stop bike taxi services in the state. The apps were briefly taken down on Friday night but were restored the following day after intervention from the central government. Officials stated that removing the applications affected taxi and auto-rickshaw services as well, prompting aggregator companies to approach the Union government and seek immediate restoration of their platforms and services.

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“The central government got in touch with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who also heads the state home department, following which the cyber department was asked to take immediate corrective measures,” said a transport department official to Hindustan Times. Authorities have accused bike taxi operators of ignoring several mandatory requirements under the state policy, including the use of electric vehicles, green-and-yellow registration plates and installation of safety dividers between riders and passengers. Officials also raised concerns over weak driver verification systems, inadequate insurance coverage, insufficient women’s safety safeguards and poor emergency response arrangements linked to bike taxi operations in Maharashtra.

“Driver verification mechanisms, insurance protections, women’s safety measures and emergency response systems are inadequate. Rash and negligent driving commonly associated with such bike taxi operations poses a substantial risk to public safety,” said the official to Hindustan Times. To tighten compliance, the Maharashtra government is now preparing to amend its bike taxi policy introduced in September last year. “Operators will be required to develop Maharashtra-specific applications for bike taxi operations so that the state has control over services. The apps will be linked to licence numbers to maintain state-specific exclusivity. Operators will also have to geo-fence their applications to ensure state-specific operations on those platforms,” said a government official to Hindustan Times.

State transport minister Pratap Sarnaik said operators would present their concerns and operational challenges during a meeting scheduled for Friday. “We will not compromise on safety-related norms or dilute the policy. However, if operators face difficulties in replacing existing bikes with electric vehicles and seek additional time, we can consider it. Illegal operations, however, will not be allowed. Operators will also have to ensure that their bike taxi services are kept separate to avoid the inconvenience they faced last week,” he said, reported Hindustan Times. The government has indicated that while certain operational relaxations may be considered, strict enforcement against illegal bike taxi activities will continue across Maharashtra.