Punjab govt declares Careem, Uber illegal
By
News Desk /
Rameez Khan
Published: January 31, 2017
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PHOTO: CAREEM
LAHORE / KARACHI: Punjab Government’s Provincial Transport Authority on Monday declared Careem, Uber and other ride-hailing services illegal.
A notification in this regard was sent to Lahore’s chief Traffic Officer to ensure these services are not allowed on Lahore’s roads. However, it is still unclear if the ban is valid for Lahore only, or other cities in Punjab are also part of the order.
The notification states that the two companies have been offering transport services “without registering private cars with any regulatory body.”
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The notification says that since private cars are being used for transportation, and they must not be used for commercial purposes, such services are not only violating local laws but also pose as a security threat for the public.
The provincial government has also stated in the notification that the failure of Uber and Careem to obtain the required fitness certificate and route permits for their fleet of cars has resulted in “great loss to the government.”
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According to the notification, field traffic officers have been directed to ensure that prompt action is taken against these illegal services and that they are not allowed to operate in the city.
Sindh govt asks PTA to block Careem app
A day after Punjab government banned ride-hailing services, the Sindh government also sought legal action against them.
The Sindh government has declared the use of private cars as taxis without mandatory legal permits as ‘illegal’ and has contacted PTA to block Careem’s mobile app.
Sindh Secretary Transport Tuaha Farooqui said there are three types of NOCs which the management of Careem and Uber had to obtain. “When private cars are used as commercial vehicles they have to pay Rs160 annually to the Excise and Taxation department. However, they are not required to change their number plates,” Farooqui explained while speaking to
The Express Tribune.
Apart from that, he said that the management of the two companies have to get themselves registered with the Regional Transport Authority (RTA) and also need to get fitness certificate from them. Once these requirements are fulfilled, he said that they can operate freely.
According to him, they have written around 12 letters to Careem to comply with the legal issues. As for Uber, the secretary transport said their management committed to go through the legal processes, however, only eight of their vehicles were registered.
As for now, he said that they have written to the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to block their services.
Management of Careem, did not respond to the issue, when contacted by
The Express Tribune.
Ride-hailing apps
Pakistan was a relatively late entrant to the ride-hailing landscape – Dubai-headquartered Careem launched middle of last year and Uber in March, but the battle between the two heavyweights is only now truly underway.
Uber says Pakistan is one of its fastest growing global markets and Careem asserts that its local operations have grown at an average rate of 50 per cent month-on-month.
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Such figures aren’t hard to believe in a country of 200 million people with abysmal public transport options. Both startups solve a very real problem – hence the fast rate of adoption. Uber drivers are being forced to stay on the road for up to 18 hours a day. But both Uber and Careem have so far been wary to venture out of the large urban centres of Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad. Uber, in fact, doesn’t even operate in the capital city and hasn’t given a timeline when it plans to do so.
