About a decade back, the usually placid Ashwem village, in North Goa, was thrown into commotion as two buses, packed with tourists from Russia and Estonia, screeched to a halt. A bunch of local taxi drivers boarded the buses and herded the shaken tourists off them. Then, they asked the bus drivers to steer the two vehicles to the nearest police station, where they reportedly lodged a complaint against a travel agency for illegally operating the bus service.
The foreign tourists were caught in the crossfire between local taxi operators and the travel industry, which was trying to loosen the stranglehold of taximen on the tourist transportation in the State.
In another more recent incident, a driver of the government’s cab app – GoaMiles – was thrashed by private taxi operators outside a local politician’s residence in Pernem for undercutting fares by 50 per cent. The legacy taxi service providers were also miffed by GoaMiles being given a counter at the new Mopa airport when their booking should be only on apps.
For long, the road on which Goa’s taxi service has plied has been checkered and conflict-ridden. Both sides have given a resolute and persistent fight to preserve their fiefdom. They have taken their battle to the courts, negotiation tables, streets and the corridors of power; yet failed to find a viable resolution.
They have taken their battle to the courts, negotiation tables, streets and the corridors of power; yet failed to find a viable resolution.
The stakes on both sides are high. Local taximen claim, for them, it’s a matter of livelihood. Across the fence, travel bodies want the freedom to choose any mode of transport for their guests. They believe high taxi charges are a major deterrent to Goa’s tourism sector.
In the meantime, tourists pouring into the State in search of tranquillity end up paying one of the highest taxi rates in the country due to ineffective app-based cab services available in Goa.
There have been times when their one-way fare to the hotel has scaled higher than their air ticket cost. Ride-hailing services – Ola and Uber – are conspicuous by their absence here – one of the leading tourist destinations in the India.
Try retracing the origin of the taxi problems and it goes several decades back to the late 80s. Its seeds were sown on arrival of hospitality majors into the State. Goa, then, was predominantly an agricultural State. Tourism was in its infancy. Hotel companies came scouting for land to develop their properties in the arcadian atmosphere of Goan villages.
In their dealings for the land with the landowners, panchas (of Village Panchayats), politicians and other authorities, one of the assurances given by them was to generate jobs for locals. Among the many livelihoods the growing hospitality sector has created over the years, one of them is that of taxi operators.
Goa, then, was predominantly an agricultural State. Tourism was in its infancy. Hotel companies came scouting for land to develop their properties in the arcadian atmosphere of Goan villages.
The clout and strength of these taximen have grown with the growth of Goa’s tourism sector. They have become intrinsic to the State’s political ecosystem and, in some ways, even unassailable.
Inasmuch as, the whole thing today looks like an irretrievable situation. It’s assumed a gargantuan proportion with each side flexing their might to squash bids by the other. In 2014, when ride-hailing app Ola tried to foray into Goa, local taxi lobbies wrecked its attempts, compelling it to retreat.
Government’s GoaMiles has already met with fierce opposition. The argument of cab associations is entry of ride-hailing apps will corporatise taxi services and kill self-employment by putting the entire local taxi service business under their umbrellas.
In response to a query in the State legislative assembly last week, the Goa Transport Minister Mauvin Godinho informed there were close to 18,000 taxis being operated in the State and close to 1560 vehicles of GoaMiles were on the Goan road. Private taxi operators still outnumber drivers registered on the State-owned app.
In response to a query in the State legislative assembly last week, the Goa Transport Minister Mauvin Godinho informed there were close to 18,000 taxis being operated in the State and close to 1560 vehicles of GoaMiles were on the Goan road.
In the recent weeks, the feud has escalated with Chief Minister Pramod Sawant resolving to come up with a solution for the taxi issue during the “ongoing assembly session” and with the transport minister taking a firm stand to back the GoaMiles. All this has raised the hackles of the State’s taxi associations, who have also picked up their gauntlet to fight back.
And so, Goa’s troubled taxi service trundles on a rickety road even as its tourists shell out exorbitant cab fares to live their Goan beach-dream.