The video posted by Vidya Gopalakrishnan had gone viral on social media.After a Kochi woman's video of auto-rickshaw drivers threatening her and the driver of the online taxi she hired in the city went viral, the Southern Railway stated that there is no ban on any particular taxis on station premises.
There is no exclusive right for permitted taxi on passengers at railway station, a press release issued by the Trivandrum division of Southern Railway said Thursday.
“Railway has given permit for taxi (car) service at major stations including Trivandrum Central, Ernakulam Junction (Ernakulam South) and Ernakulam Town (Ernakulam North). The permit fee is collected for parking on Railway premises and it does not give any exclusive right for them on carrying passengers,” the press release stated.
The release comes two days after Vidya Gopalakrishnan, a fashion designer from Kochi, posted an online video in which the driver of Uber taxi she hired was threatened by auto-rickshaw drivers at Ernakulam South railway station, demanding that she alight the cab and take an auto or taxi from the station premises.
The video had gone viral and was shared by several people who recalled similar experiences they had faced.
The Railway, in the press release, said that taxi drivers who harass passengers will have to face strict action including cancellation of parking permit.
“If any permitted taxi driver is found to be causing difficulty to passengers, passenger is free to contact station manager/deputy station manager (commercial) at Railway stations. Railway will take strict action including cancellation of parking permit of such taxis.”
For auto-rickshaws, the Railway said that even though they tried permit system at Trivandrum Central, Ernakulam Junction, Ernakulam Town and Aluva stations, the plan did not materialize 'due to opposition from various corners'.
However, “there is no exclusive right for them too on carrying passengers from Railway premises even if they are operating from prepaid counters. Passengers should contact local police/government Railway police in case of any difficulty to them from auto-rickshaw drivers,” Railway added.
A tussle has been going on between the drivers of conventional taxis and those affiliated with the online cab aggregators ever since the app taxi services started in Kochi.
