On January 13, the Bombay High Court directed bike-taxi aggregator Rapido to suspend all its operations in the state immediately till January 20 for operating without procuring a license from the Maharashtra government. Many regular users, including some Symbiosis students, were affected by the shutdown, while others switched to Uber and Ola for the time being. Adya Gautam, a third year Public Relations student from SCMC, said, “Rapido was my top choice when booking a ride because of its subsidized rates and discounts. I missed those deals while booking rides on other apps when it was shut down.” Vanshika Khanna, third year Graphic Designing student from SID, shares why Rapido is her go to app, “I personally prefer bike rides, not just because it’s cheaper, but also helps me cut through the traffic. As a girl, I find riding on Rapido bikes very safe and convenient.” After highlighting the app’s af fordability, responsiveness and convenience, she concluded, “Since I was in the habit of using Rapido, the shutdown felt really in- convenient.” Shambhavi, a third year Fashion Design ing student from SID says, “Comparatively, Rapido responds faster in peak hours than Uber and Ola, and it’s slightly cheaper, so as a college student with a limited budget, I preferred it. Even though earlier it was way more affordable, now it’s equally pricey, so I did not get bothered in its absence.” The HC was hearing a petition filed by Rapido challenging the refusal by the Pune RTO to grant a bike taxi aggregator license to Rapido and other similar entities. The Maharashtra government issued a notification on January 19 prohibiting the use of non-trans- port vehicles by ride aggregators, effectively outlawing bike taxis. Ananya Narayan Dhanabalan, third year Journalism Student from SCMC, comments, “Rapido shutting down isn’t the worst thing to hap pen, but for college students who live on extremely limited bud gets, the bike taxis were a very affordable option, especially for shorter distances. It’s also unfortunate that Rapido and all other two-wheeler taxi services have shut down, including Uber and Ola,” and adds, “It’s not a big blow but definitely a disappointment.”
10 Jan 2023
Pratishtha Bagai
