Mumbai Taxi-rickshaw strike 'put on hold'

Mumbai: The proposed one-day strike of taxi and auto-rickshaw drivers here on Tuesday has been put on hold after the members of the union today met Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

President of Jai Bhagwan Taxi Rickshaw Sanghatana (JBTRS) Balasaheb Sanap said that Fadnavis assured him that decision on the union's demand to act against the aggregator services like Ola and Uber would be taken, and a new policy to regulate such app-based services would be formed within a week.

After getting the assurance, the union decided to put the strike "on hold", Sanap said, but added that it had not been cancelled.

"We have faith in the Chief Minister and would like to wait for his action," he said.

His union represents more than 70,000 taxi and rickshaw owners and drivers, he said.

The newly-formed union had called for a strike on July 26 demanding regulation of app-based taxi aggregators.

The Swabhiman Taxi and Rickshaw Union too had claimed that aggregators like Uber and Ola were unauthorised.

The unions are also demanding implementation of the proposed city-taxi scheme which would regulate the cab aggregators under the Motor Vehicles Act.