Bike taxi services resume, but Karnataka High Court clarifies no judicial nod given
Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka High Court has clarified that it had not passed any order permitting ride-hailing companies to resume bike taxi services, a day after such operations were seen returning to city roads.
A division bench headed by Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru observed that while the state government is free to act against bike taxi aggregators in accordance with law, enforcement authorities must refrain from targeting individual vehicle owners.
During a hearing on August 20, the bench had adjourned the matter to September 22, giving the government time to decide whether it intended to frame a policy on bike taxis.
On Friday, Advocate General Shashikiran Shetty informed the court that several operators had restarted services despite there being no judicial order permitting them to do so.
Counsel representing bike taxi riders countered, saying that enforcement authorities were seizing motorcycles belonging to individual owners.
The bench clarified that its earlier concern was limited to protecting riders and owners from undue hardship and urged the state not to take “precipitate action” against them. “Don’t harass the individual owners,” Chief Justice Bakhru told the Advocate General, who assured the court that no such action would be taken.
The court made it clear that it had not issued any interim order in the matter and that the appeals were listed for final disposal.
The petitions before the division bench were filed by Uber India Systems, ANI Technologies Pvt Ltd (Ola), Roppen Transportation Services Pvt. Ltd. (Rapido) and others.
Earlier, on April 2, 2025, a single-judge bench had ruled that bike taxi operations could not be permitted unless the state notified guidelines under Section 93 of the Motor Vehicles Act and relevant rules. The order had also held that the government could not be compelled to process aggregator licence applications.
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PM to lay stone of north India's first semiconductor unit, open Namo Bharat corridor in UP next week
Lucknow (PTI): Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of north India's first semiconductor manufacturing unit in Gautam Buddh Nagar and inaugurate the Namo Bharat rapid rail corridor along with the Meerut Metro next week, marking major milestones in the state's infrastructure push.
Speaking in the Legislative Council during the Budget Session on Monday, Adityanath said Uttar Pradesh today has "excellent connectivity by water, land and air", and highlighted the prime minister's upcoming engagements in the state.
He said the foundation stone of the semiconductor unit in Gautam Buddh Nagar would be laid on February 21, terming it a significant step towards making the state a hub for high-technology manufacturing.
On February 22, Modi will inaugurate the remaining stretches of the 82-km Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut Namo Bharat corridor, connecting Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi with Modipuram in Meerut, he said.
Alongside, the 23-km Meerut Metro corridor with 13 stations will also be launched.
According to officials, the remaining sections include a 5-km stretch in Delhi between Sarai Kale Khan and New Ashok Nagar, and a 21-km stretch from Meerut South to Modipuram.
The 82-km corridor comprises key stations such as Sarai Kale Khan, Anand Vihar, Ghaziabad, Guldhar, Muradnagar, Modinagar South, Modinagar North and Meerut South, forming the backbone of the regional rapid transit system connecting major residential, commercial and industrial clusters.
Recalling the pre-2017 situation, Adityanath said it earlier took around three hours to travel from Meerut to Delhi and even then security was not guaranteed.
"Today, the distance between Delhi and Meerut can be covered in about 45 minutes through the 12-lane highway, and with the rapid rail, it will be further streamlined," he said, adding that law and order had significantly improved.
Adityanath said Uttar Pradesh accounts for 55 per cent of the country's total expressway network and has the largest railway network in India. The state currently has a network of 22 expressways, of which seven are operational, five are under construction and work on 10 others is underway, he added.
He said metro services are running on six corridors in the state, and the Meerut corridor will be inaugurated by the prime minister on February 22.
Highlighting inland waterways, the chief minister said the Varanasi-Haldia waterway has been developed, with terminals at Ramnagar, Chandauli, Mirzapur and Ghazipur being upgraded.
He also said that when his government assumed office, only two airports were fully operational in the state and two were partially functional.
"Today, there are 16 airports in Uttar Pradesh, including four international airports, while the fifth international airport at Jewar is ready," he said, adding that efforts are on to take the project forward this month with the prime minister's participation.
The country's first Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) hub is also being established at Jewar, he added, underlining the state's emergence as a major connectivity and logistics hub.
