App-based cabs to be treated as any other taxi service, says government

Clearing the ambiguity over laws governing app-based cabs such as Uber and Ola, the government on Monday said such cabs should be treated like any other taxi service and it will soon issue guidelines on the same to the states.

"App-based cab companies should not hide behind the garb of aggregator or developer of digital technology. An app-based cab should be treated as a normal cab. This will clear the air for states to form their own rules, treating them at par with other cab fleet owners and the app-based cab should be treated as a normal cab", Ministry of Road Transport and Highways Secretary Vijay Chhibber told reporters in the national capital.

Speaking on the sidelines of the International Road Federation's (IRF) conference on Road Safety initiatives, he said the government will soon issue an advisory to the states on app-based cabs. "This advisory will be issued soon", he added.

Delhi government had on January 1 banned operation of app-based cab services till they complied with the guidelines of Radio Taxi Scheme of 2006, which was amended on December 26 last year.

The scheme was amended after a woman executive was allegedly raped in an Uber cab in December last year.

The January 1 order was challenged by Ola before the high court, which on July 29 had passed an interim order upholding Delhi government's decision.