New taxis based on the Esteem are being launched to tackle competition; but some teething troubles remain

The yellow taxis of old will have to compete with the private taxi services in the city. The Taxi
Union has decided to acquire Esteem cars as they have been facing competition from the private taxi companies.
The decision was taken by the union on Wednesday. Some 25 taxis of the Esteem model, will ply the roads of Mumbai city. “Private taxis charge Rs. 8.50 more than us. The state government has decided to replace over 100 taxis in the city which are old. There are over 53,000 taxis in Mumbai. To change the functioning of the taxis, the state government had given contracts to private companies like the Fullura Foundation, Meru Company and Mega Cab, which bought permits from the original owners and ran the taxis. They introduced the cool cab system too. But now, we have also decided to modernize our taxis for the comfort of our passengers,” said A. L. Quadros, President of the Taximen Union.
According to traffic estimates, 32 taxis of the Fullora Foundation and 106 taxis of Mega Cabs are running in the city. “But these taxiwallas are charging higher rates than us. They charge over Rs. 24, as against our minimum charge of Rs. 13 rupees. We will surely compete with these private taxis by launching our Esteem taxis in few days. The taxi will have all modern facilities and the charges will be the same. We have placed an order for more than 500 cool cabs. By December, 200 cool cabs will be on Mumbai’s roads,” Quadros added.
Dr. Deepak Sawant, the leader of the Mumbai Taximen Sena said, “We have arranged for bank loans so that the taxi owner can buy an Esteem taxi and repay the loan with lower interest rates. These taxis will run on CNG and will have electronic meters.”
However, some existing taxi drivers in the city seemed to be unhappy with the decision to launch Esteem taxis by the Union. “The plan looks good on paper. But it cannot be applied practically. The taxi drivers are already suffering from losses due to the private taxis on the roads. How can we repay the loans for this Esteem based taxi?” asks Lalta Kumar, a taxi driver in Parel.
Another taxi driver operating in Churchgate, Sandesh Mukane said, “We hardly earn Rs. 200 to 250 a day since the private taxis have taken over our business and we are incurring huge losses. This plan is beneficial only for taxi owners who have more than three to four taxis operating in the city.”
Kartar Singh, another taxi driver at C.S.T station said, “The state government fully supports the private taxi system in the city. But changing the model of the car won’t help. I cannot afford to buy an Esteem to use as a  taxi.”

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