Though Uber has been ‘banned’ on Monday, the Transport Department is struggling to enforce the ban on it and similar web-based taxi services.
The transport officials claimed that it is hard to detect individual cabs flouting the ban. Unlike the radio-taxi cabs, the cars provided by the web-based companies don’t bear its brand names or logos.
In fact, these companies function like aggregators and take online cab-bookings without actually having any driver on its rolls.
According to transport officials, there are at least 20 such technology-driven companies. And, Uber alone hired services of 3,000 drivers.
Confronted with a severe staff crunch, the Transport Department said it will take help of Delhi traffic police to enforce the ban.
The department has about 30 teams of enforcement officials, who work three shifts every day. Every team has five officials each.
Special Commissioner, Transport, K S Ganger said the department will also approach the Economic Offence Wing of Delhi Police to help clamp down on these web-based companies.
He also said the government will ensure that all public service vehicles are fitted with GPS.
Post the physiotherapy student gang-rape in 2012, the Delhi government had made it mandatory to have GPS fitted in all commercial vehicles, which is yet to be implemented by the Transport Department.
Almost half of the 85,000 autorickshaws have GPS-enabled fare meters. Nearly, 3,500 economy radio taxis don’t have GPS devices.
And, other radio taxis which have it are not linked to the central control room of the Transport Department. The radio taxi operators, however, keep a track of their vehicles through their control units.
Ganger said the Transport Department will ensure that all GPS devices installed in public service vehicles are linked to the department’s central control room.He, however, said they are yet to set a deadline for themselves.