Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy has ordered officials to strictly implement the Karnataka High Court’s directive to prohibit bike taxi services by mid-May.
The High Court of Karnataka, in its April 2 ruling, had provided ride aggregators a six-week window to halt their bike taxi operations. The court mandated the state government to guarantee complete cessation of these services within the specified period.
This judgment arose from writ petitions filed by rider aggregators, requesting the court to instruct the Transport Department’s secretary, commissioner, and additional commissioner to process applications allowing personal motorcycles to be registered as transport vehicles. However, the court declined this plea, instead directing the gradual dismantling of bike taxi infrastructure.
On April 25, Minister Reddy instructed Transport Secretary NV Prasad and Commissioner for Transport and Road Safety Yogeesh AM to ensure companies such as Uber India Systems Pvt Ltd, Roppen Transportation Services Pvt Ltd (Rapido), and ANI Technologies Pvt Ltd (OLA) comply fully with the High Court’s orders by the deadline.
The minister emphasized that non-compliance will not be tolerated, reinforcing the government’s commitment to regulatory enforcement in the transport sector.
This move is poised to impact the operational landscape for urban mobility players and push for greater regulatory clarity in the ride aggregator industry.
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