Online taxi hailing application Uber has called for support from its users after incidents of its cabs being damaged, drivers assaulted and Uber-issued mobile phones being taken away have been registered in Pune and Mumbai, by some groups of people. This comes at a time when Uber is planning to invest $1 billion in India to primarily improve its operators, expand to other cities, develop new products and payment solutions and set up a better support network. PSV badges only to MH domiciles or Marathi speakers Uber claims that the ‘politically motivated groups’ have threatened to shut down aggregator services in the city after issuing strikes and are aiming to pressurise the government to pass laws against the aggregator industry in the state of Maharashtra. The group’s rules state that: ‘Public Service Vehicle’ badge will be issued only to those applicants who have lived in the state for over 15 years and can read and write in Marathi Fare restriction will lead to higher fares The company says that thousands of drivers being forced to stay off the roads, adding that the proposed fare restriction will lead to artificially created fares, decreased availability of its cars, decreased jobs and earnings for drivers and reduced transport options in Mumbai suburbs and neighbourhoods where taxis don’t ply. Open to engage in dialogue for regulations Uber claims that 34.2% of its trips in Mumbai either begin on end in the Mumbai suburban area, based on a random selection of 50,000 trips taken between its…
