Maharashtra's Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik on Tuesday offered temporary relief to auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers across the state who do not speak Marathi, announcing that no action would be taken against them till Aug. 15 — but warned that permit cancellations remain on the table if the rule is violated after that deadline.
Earlier, on April 16, the Maharashtra government has made it mandatory for all licenced auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers across the state to know Marathi from May 1, with licences of non-compliant drivers liable to be cancelled.
The latest announcement came following a meeting at the department and was addressed at a press conference, where Sarnaik laid out the state government's plan to enforce an existing rule that mandates all commercial vehicle drivers to be conversant in Marathi.
"It is mandatory for taxi and rickshaw drivers to speak Marathi. We will start our campaign from May 1." He made clear, however, that the initial phase of the drive would focus on awareness rather than punishment.
"Our drive will be from May 1 to August 15. So, till August 15, no action will be taken with respect to not knowing the Marathi language. After that, assessing the situation, we will decide whether to give a further extension or not," he said.
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The minister also clarified that the rule is not new. "According to the information we received, the state government had issued a booklet in 2020. Everyone made the demand, which is fine; however, this rule has also been applied to Ola and Uber," Sarnaik said, indicating that app-based aggregator platforms will not be exempt from the requirement.
On enforcement, Sarnaik said, "If the law is violated, permits can be cancelled. We will not take direct action ourselves, but we are launching the campaign. This campaign will run from May 1 to August 15, and a committee will be formed regarding this matter."
He added that drivers can learn Marathi at RTO offices, "We will provide space in the RTO office to learn Marathi" Sarnaik said.
The announcement is significant given that a large number of auto and taxi drivers in Mumbai and other Maharashtra cities hail from non-Marathi speaking states, particularly Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Driver unions had been pressing the government for more time, and the three-and-a-half month window appears to be a direct response to those demands.
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