Mumbai Autorickshaw Taximen's Union plans own app

At a time when almost all transport services are accessible through smartphones, taxis and auto rickshaws don't wish to lag behind. Just like competitors Uber, Ola and Meru Plus, the Mumbai Autorickshaw Taximen's Union wishes to get on the app bandwagon.

Ongo is an app that they propose will enable booking and payments over mobile phones. The union, which until recently vehemently opposed to the entry of mobile application-based cabs, is now taking a keen interest in launching its own app. Members were seen distributing pamphlets among commuters, that read, Ab mobile se do rickshaw ke paise.

The flyers are also being pasted behind drivers' seats in three wheelers. Shashank Rao, union leader of Mumbai Autorickshaw Taximen's Union, said, "This is like an e-wallet that will allow people to make payments through their cell phone. Booking of autos cannot be done online."

The Maharashtra government is in the process of framing rules for accommodating mobile application-based cabs after the Delhi case of 2014, where a woman passenger was raped inside an Uber vehicle.

All mobile aggregators have been asked to install GPS and other security measures in their vehicles, so that a passenger can send a SOS message to the firm's control room and the local police simultaneously.