18 Ola, Uber cabs impounded in Delhi after Kejriwal's warning

As many as 18 cabs from Ola and Uber were impounded on Tuesday by the Delhi transport department for charging more than the prescribed limit during the odd-even scheme which is underway in the national capital.

The move follows after a warning by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who on Monday assured strict action, including impounding of cabs, if the app-based taxis were found charging more than the prescribed rates.

Ola and Uber had announced that they were suspending the surge pricing after the Delhi government’s call of strict action.

However, Uber did not specify if the surge pricing would resume after the second phase of the odd-even traffic scheme ends on April 30.

It pledged to work with the Delhi government to provide reliable mobility solutions to people in the city.

Ola cab services also announced rollback of peak pricing in Delhi-NCR.

The Delhi Government on Monday directed the impounding of taxis charging exorbitant fare from the public.

Transport Minister Gopal Rai had said that apart from impounding taxis, they would also seize the licences of the taxi drivers and cancel their permit.

He said the order was applicable to all kinds of cab services including online aggregators as well as private taxis, radio taxis and black-and-yellow taxis.

The demand for taxis has shot up on account of the odd-even traffic scheme that started on April 15 and will run till April 30.

Under the scheme, aimed at battling pollution, diesel and petrol driven private vehicles with odd registration numbers can ply only on odd dates and those with even registration numbers on even dates.

Passengers complained that taxis were over-charging taking advantage of the scheme.