Panaji: Tourist taxi operators on Sunday withdrew their three-day strike following a written assurance from the Goa government that pending fitness certificates will be issued by January 24, and the government will stop installation of speed governors on their vehicles.
“The government will file an intervention petition in the Supreme Court to seek relief for the taxi drivers on speed governors. Goa is a small state and has narrow roads, so speeding is not possible,” Laxman Korgaonkar, spokesperson for North Goa Tourist Taxi Association, told reporters.
The strike was called off soon after the representatives of taxi operators along with Deputy Speaker Michael Lobo met Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar at the latter’s official residence.
“We are withdrawing the strike after a written assurance from Mr. Lobo that he would resign from the BJP if the promise to provide fitness certificates to all taxi operators, without installing speed governors by January 24, was not kept. We still do not believe the CM, but we are giving the government an opportunity to right the wrong,” said Mr. Korgaonkar.
The SC order on speed governors on tourist taxis came last year, following a petition by Delhi-based NGO Suraksha Foundation. Subsequently, the Goa transport department had declined to provide fitness certificates without speed governors.
Mr. Parrikar said that the State is also of the opinion that speed governors is not feasible. “We do not have an issue with presenting this view before the Supreme Court. We are not ourselves convinced that a speed limit of 80 km per hour will change anything on ground. It actually should be 100 km.”
He indicated that the government will exercise a provision in the recently-amended Motor Vehicles Act, which would allow taxi drivers more time to install speed governors.
