Taxi aggregator scheme to be implemented in a month

Tribune News Service

Jammu, January 10

Jammu and Kashmir is set to introduce the Application and SMS-based Taxi Aggregator Scheme in the Union Territory with the Lieutenant-Governor, Girish Chandra Murmu, directing officers to implement the scheme within a month.

In this context, the Lieutenant-Governor chaired a meeting of the top functionaries of the Transport Department on the Taxi Aggregator Scheme here at the Civil Secretariat. He reviewed the preparedness for the implementation of the scheme coming up in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

The Lt-Governor directed the officers to call the expression of interest (EoI) for implementing the scheme within a period of one month. Before calling the EoI, consultation with all the stakeholders should also be done so that existing operators also have an equal opportunity, he added.

Murmu further directed the officers to put the requisite regulations in the scheme to ensure quality of services, safety, vehicle profile, drivers’ credentials, regulation of fares, arrangement of services and general conditions to be observed by the licensee.

Profile and antecedents of drivers will be thoroughly checked to ensure the reliability, and tariff will be regularised by the Transport Department, especially the maximum cap to be fixed, he added.

He also asked the Transport Department to prepare a data-base enlisting all details of the licenses, vehicles, drivers and operators, which shall be notified for the public. He laid special emphasis on making the health check-ups of all the drivers mandatory.

In the meeting it was informed that for ensuring the safety and security of passengers, the taxis, auto-rickshaws and other permit vehicles operating under the Taxi Aggregator Scheme would be fitted with the vehicle-tracking device, GPS, GPRS devices along with the webcam and prescribed emergency button.

Meanwhile, the Lt-Governor directed the Transport Department to rationalise the timings of the Road Transport Corporation (RTC) buses and also directed for pollution checking of private commercial vehicles. He asked them to draw a comprehensive plan for the condemnation and disposal of 20-year-old vehicles.

He further directed the officers to ensure that all new government vehicles would be BS-6 compliant in terms of emission standards.

Murmu passed the directions for preparing a plan for the decongestion of Amphalla- Janipur road, incorporating multi-level parking for which the land would be identified by the Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC).

To ensure reliability

• Profile and antecedents of drivers will be thoroughly checked to ensure the reliability
• Tariff will be regularised by the Transport Department, especially the maximum cap will be fixed,
• The Transport Department to prepare a data-base enlisting all details of the licenses, vehicles, drivers and operators, which shall be notified for the public.
• Special emphasis on making the health check-ups of all the drivers mandatory.
• The taxis, auto-rickshaws and other permit vehicles operating under the Taxi Aggregator Scheme would be fitted with the vehicle-tracking device, GPS, GPRS devices along with the webcam and prescribed emergency button.