THE GOAN NETWORK
PANAJI
The Goa government’s long-pending progressive Digital Taxi Policy has come to a halt, at least till the upcoming Assembly elections.
After a review meeting on Tuesday, Transport Minister Mauvin Godinho told reporters that the administration was unlikely to take a politically sensitive decision in the months leading up to the polls, as it has failed to garner support from the stakeholders.
“Efforts to introduce a digital platform for the taxi sector failed to get the support of taxi operators and political representatives... Elections will be there in the next six months. Which government of the day will take any such harsh decision when elections are so close? So, it will have to wait until the elections are over,” he said.
He said that while government departments had embraced digital platforms, taxi operators continued to resist the proposed system.
While presenting the State Budget 2026-27, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant had announced that the government will roll out the Goa Digital Taxi Policy this year in a fresh push to modernise the transport sector through technology-driven services.
He had further stated the progressive policy will bring taxi operators onto a common digital platform.
Godinho said political considerations had constrained the government's ability to move ahead with the policy.
“My hands are tied. What can I do? Can I force it down the throat of the people? The taxi people will come up in arms because everyone belongs to a constituency; they catch hold of their MLA. It is a normal thing,” he said.
The minister went on to state there was no immediate resolution to the issue but maintained that the government was examining various options to be taken at an appropriate time.
Referring to the Centre's proposed Bharat Taxi cooperative model, Godinho said Goa was studying different approaches while balancing concerns related to road safety and regulation.
A meeting of the Transport Department has been convened on July 6 to review pending matters, including road safety measures and the regulation of rent-a-cab and rent-a-bike services.
“Whatever needs to be done should be done as per law. We cannot make knee-jerk reactions,” he said.
