Transport Minister Sudin Dhavalikar has stated in a written reply that Goa government does not plan to allow global cab aggregators Uber/Ola to operate in the state. By not giving any reasons, Mr. Dhavlikar is exposing his ignorance. Also our former Defense Minister has been silent exposing his capabilities. Ola is Indian company, not "global" and collects taxes which are needed for the bankrupt state against allowing loot to continue. Goa Legislative Assembly is meant for discussing issues of public interest but it is strange that statements like this are made without proper justification. The shameless politicians have completely transformed democracy into dictatorship. They are meeting the demands of looters vote banks, against the wishes of the masses and only want to fill their pockets. Goa is a state with fastest growing population where, since liberation the politicians have failed to provide public transport and have used bus mafia to fund elections. People in some countries have resorted to dumping this type of shameless politicians into garbage bins. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JW6UA_2tV7g Transport Minister has been supporting meters for taxis in Goa but across the world taxis have stopped installing meters. There are kickbacks to be received from the Malaysian taxi meter company. Even if meters are installed (after several months of negotiations), cabbies will first start telling customer that they don’t get return customer and will start asking for return fare. With union support they will dictate terms to the government and one fine day all of them will gang up together to stop use of meters. Even the local Goan taxi app will follow the same fate. The only way to provide proper taxis is by allowing competition so these taxis fall in line automatically on their own like it has been already done in 80 other cities in India already, why not the so called "tourist" state ? Smart city plan is a way to fool people, we have seen that under pressure from taxi mafia the airport bus is limited to one trip/ arranged at worst timing so it becomes unviable, for smart city there will be same pressure from greedy taxi looters who currently make Rs300-500 to go from Panaji bus stand to bambolim/porvorim/city. We need help from Ponjekars to pursue the issue with Manohar Parrikar to whom this taxi petition is addressed, but he has refused to acknowledge it. On his campaign, please ask him what he will do with Taxis and show the power of your vote bank. Try to get a firm commitment and let us know on social media. This will help you decide whom to vote as well as influence others. If he is elected the information from internal sources is, we all will have to forget about taxi.  Even if you own exotic car with driver you need to support taxi petition. As others use Ola/Uber you have an advantage to drive/park with less congestion in city. As most people are unaware of the benefits of app based taxis. Here is what you are missing …. PARKING: Owning a car and driving to work in a city like Panaji one has to start early morning to get parking space. There was a time when you didn’t dare to remove the car until it was time to return back home. Now with paid parking it's easier to get a spot. But parking charges in any city in the world increase based on highest amount people can pay to keep them used. So owning a car is not the solution to the problem but is the root of the problem itself. Searching a parking spot, adds to congestion. CONGESTION: Roads in cities cannot be widened and have to accommodate increasing number of cars every year. The congestion problem increases due to high number of cars in the family and this increases time spent in traffic. Young & old family members forced to drive increases accident risk. SCHOOLS: For schools the services of taxi aggregators (Ola/Uber) are a blessing. Parents can coordinate movements of kids without being totally involved with driving the kids to and back from school. Without sacrificing their working time for this mundane task. The location of Curti school complex is a disaster, thanks to Manohar Parrikar and the problem can only be reduced with Ola/Uber, reducing the colossal amount of time wasted by parents and teachers. A group of students can arrange shared taxi from school saving cost and valuable study time rather than waiting to reach home late due to various dependencies. DELIVERY: Aggregator companies like Ola/Uber have a low cost delivery business like taxis to deliver items like food from restaurants with which people will be able to order quality food at competitive prices. The delivery business also saves people's time in traffic and reduces congestion. POLLUTION: Due to vehicle density has deteriorated the air quality in Panaji and all other cities. Study on air quality conducted by Goa State Pollution Control Board has confirmed that pollution has spiked in recent years. In Mapusa the respirable particulate matter has gone up by two times the national standard. (44-73 mpmc in 2015-16 to 120-218 mpmc in 2016-17). Vehicles are second largest emitters of PM2.5 pollutant after road dust, get deposited in our respiratory organs and are also known to be carcinogenic, leading to lung cancer. The only solution to the problem is allowing taxi aggregators, Ola has introduced Electric/CNG cars that will be increased over time. (Ref article below) COMMUTING: As app based taxis become available it could open up new possibilities for moving in/out of city. e.g. those commuting from Panaji to Porvorim could order taxi from betim and take ferry across the river, reducing time that was spent in traffic congestion and reducing pollution. As people use this method betim could develop into a share taxi hub on its own. Supporting articles: 5 Jul 2017 Private cars may join Uber, Ola fleet to ease traffichttp://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/private-cars-may-join-uber-ola-fleet-to-ease-traffic/articleshow/59460988.cms 3 Aug 2017 No proposal to allow Ola: Goa transport Minister http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/no-proposal-to-allow-ola-goa-transport-minister/articleshow/59901903.cms 3 Aug 2017 No Plan To Allow Uber, Ola In Goa: Transport Minister http://www.ndtv.com/goa-news/no-plan-to-allow-uber-ola-in-goa-transport-minister-sudin-dhavalikar-1733148 3 Aug 2017 Uber, Ola will not be allowed in Goa, says minister https://www.newsbytesapp.com/timeline/Business/9501/53028/uber-ola-service-ban-in-goa-continues 12 Jun 2017 Dismal air quality in Panaji, Mapusa http://www.navhindtimes.in/dismal-air-quality-in-panaji-mapusa/ 30 Jul 2017 ‘Smart’ Panaji to focus on transporthttp://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/smart-panaji-to-focus-on-transport/articleshow/59826806.cms