the goan I network
MARGAO
Barely hours after the all-Goa tourist taxi operators vowed to continue the indefinite agitation on Wednesday evening, hundreds of tourist taxi operators under the banner of South Goa Tourist Taxi Owners Association returned back to the roads on Thursday after keeping their vehicles off roads for six days.
Justifying their decision to call off their six-day agitation, the tourist taxi operators from South Goa pointed out that the strike had a telling effect on the boys, who had to go without livelihood for the last one week coupled with the fact that the payment of vehicle installment was staring at the self employed operators. That the black and yellow taxi operators had already decided to resume their operations form today also weighed on the minds of the tourist taxi operators, sources said.
‘The Goan’ understands that the South Goa Association took the decision to call on Chief Minister Pramod Sawant after a late night meeting with Benaulim MLA Churchill Alemao. Sources said a delegation of South Goa tourist taxi operators called on the Benaulim MLA with a plea to seek an appointment with the Chief Minister and resolve the issue taking into account their charter of demands, including their main demand that the GoaMiles taxis not be allowed to pick up customers from starred hotels.
Association secretary Roque Fernandes informed that the South Goa taxi owners discussed the situation after the meeting at Varca before taking a decision to seek an appointment with the Chief Minister. “For the last six days, our boys had to go without any business. Unlike many others, taxi business is
our only source of livelihood and we had to go without any business during the last six days. Our members were also worried about the payment of installment if the agitation had to just continue,” Roque said, adding that the decision by the black and yellow taxi owners to resume their operations after a meeting with the Chief Minister finally made the tourist taxi operators to do a rethink.
Roque and other tourist taxi operators only hoped that the government would protect their interests by dissuading the GoaMiles taxis from picking up customers from hotels. “We had no objection if the GoaMiles drops customers to hotels. We only want the business of pick-up of customers to eke a livelihood and to sustain our families,” Roque added.
He further said the delegation of South Goa tourist taxi operators has also urged the Chief Minister to cap the number of vehicles in the taxi business. “We also want the government to induct two members of the taxi association from North and South Goa on the State Transport Authority so that the taxi operators have a say in the decision making process,” he said, adding “we only hope that the government will protect the interest of local tourist taxi operators.
