Rapido claims they are lawfully functioning in Pune as RTO launches a campaign against them.

The Regional Transport Office (RTO) Pune is cracking down on Rapido, a bike taxi service. Rapido has dubbed the move against the aggregator unlawful, claiming that the firm has answered to all letters received by the RTO Pune and has repeatedly made clear their legal stance. Over 500 bikes registered with Rapido have been confiscated by Pune RTO in the recent months, and the riders have been fined.

The company does not have authorization to conduct business in the city, according to RTO authorities.

However, Rapido has denied the claims in a statement. Rapido is a law-abiding company and has consistently provided a formal response to the RTO's notifications. By responding, we have repeatedly communicated to the RTO the proper legal position. We do our business in Pune in accordance with the guidelines established by the Indian government's rules and regulations as well as the ruling rendered by the Supreme Court of India.

Since there is no regulation governing the operation of bike taxis in the State of Maharashtra, we must abide by the Hon'ble Supreme Court's rulings regarding the status quo, according to a statement from Rapido.

According to the Central Government's Motor Vehicle Aggregator Guidelines-2020, no aggregator operating in any state may be prohibited from ride-sharing unless specifically stated to do so by the state's transportation authorities in an official notification to that effect, which must be posted on the website of the relevant transport department.

Rapido representatives stated that it is unfair to Pune city residents who depend on us for their livelihood and mobility to claim that our bike taxi aggregation services are unlawful.

When Rapido members are spotted riding a ride in the city, Pune RTO authorities punish them Rs 10,000. Instead of seeking a judicial remedy to completely stop the activity, Rapido temporarily compensates the member for the fine.

When questioned about the situation, Rapido representatives stated, "We are devoted to ensuring that our ride captains are not placed under any unnecessary stress, financial or otherwise. For this reason, the firm promptly reimburses the money for challans issued to the captains by RTO Pune."

The corporation claims that the Pune RTO's enforcement actions were forced onto the organization by the local car unions. Officials from the Pune Regional Transport Office (RTO) claimed that because the providers of bike taxi services are not authorized to operate in the city, they have sent a team to take action against them.

However, they are having trouble booking the rides because there is nothing they can do but book a ride to pick up the rider because all of the vehicles registered with the bike taxi service have white licence plates and no identifiable markings, making it difficult to distinguish between regular riders and those registered with the service.

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