Delhi: Swati Maliwal raises concern over unchecked growth of e-rickshaws

AAP Rajya Sabha member Swati Maliwal on Wednesday expressed concern over unchecked growth of e-rickshaws in Delhi, and demanded strict regulations for them to ensure urban mobility remains efficient and safe.

Raising the issue during the Zero Hour, she said the unregulated surge of e-rickshaws has created severe traffic congestion in the national capital.

Maliwal further said there is no cap on the number of e-rickshaws, leading to uncontrolled proliferation, particularly around metro stations, markets, and major roads.

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She also said authorities do not have accurate data on the number of registered e-rickshaws in the national capital. She expressed concern over the lack of licensing and formal training among the drivers.

In her mention, Maliwal also spoke about electrocution of a 7-year-old boy due to an illegal e-rickshaw charging station.

She said e-rickshaws are involved in accidents due to poor safety standards, overloading, and reckless driving.

The AAP MP proposed measures like imposing a cap on e-rickshaw numbers, mandatory registration and licensing, designated zones and fixed routes, stricter traffic enforcement, and shutting down unauthorized charging points.

“I am not saying that all e-rickshaw drivers are bad,” she said adding while autos and taxis are strictly regulated, e-rickshaws continue to operate without any accountability.

Strict regulations must be in place to check underage driving and traffic rule violations, else they will become a traffic menace, she said.

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In his Zero Hour mention, Ramji Lal Suman (SP) spoke on the need to provide legal guarantee on minimum support price (MSP) for major crops.

He emphasised that problems of farmers cannot be addressed till the government agrees to provide a legal guarantee on MSP.