PANAJI
Addressing media persons on the sidelines of a conclave on the Goods and Services Tax for legislators, Parrikar finally broke his silence on the issue saying that the best time to take up the issue would be during the monsoon, which is the off season.
“I will be calling a meeting to decide on the issue in June. I also have the responsibility to ensure law and order in the state,” Parrikar said when asked to comment on the demand to introduce taxi cab aggregators Ola and Uber or any others in Goa.
“I believe that the consumer needs to have a decent choice. He cannot have all the choice, but at least a decent choice,” Parrikar said.
The demand to have cab aggregators, be it Ola or Uber, has been a demand first made through an online petition which garnered more than 7,000 signatures within a
few weeks.
The petition highlighted several issues like that of the need for cab aggregators not for the use of tourists but rather for locals as a point to point service, rather than sightseeing which tourist taxis can continue to service.
Mousinho Reis, proponent of the cab aggregators in Goa, has said that the only demand is for a reasonable service for locals and not the astronomical rates charged by tourist taxis.
“The biggest problem is the rates charged by tourist taxis, which makes it impossible for local Goans to use them. We are not against the tourist taxis, they can continue with what they have been initially set up for -- tourists for sightseeing and excursions. App based taxi services can’t be used for sightseeing, which often involves waiting and going from one place to another,” Reis told The Goan seeking to stress that the tourist taxi service will not be affected.
On the other hand, the tourist taxi associations have claimed they’re charging only the notified rates, which itself is high averaging at around `35 per kilometre.
