Uber returns to Delhi after ban for alleged rape incident
Car share firm Uber has resumed services in Delhi, weeks after it was banned over an allegation of rape by one of its passengers.
In a statement, Uber said the ban had ‘severely impacted’ the livelihoods of its drivers so it has applied for a license under the Radio Taxi Scheme to ‘reflect our commitment to providing riders with more options for safe and reliable transportation, including the ability to request a Radio Taxi on-demand’.
It said it is only allowing driver-partners who have undergone re-verification of their police clearance in the last six weeks to get back on the Uber platform.
"For an additional layer of screening, we are implementing independent background checks on all driver partners, plus vehicle documentation reviews," it said.
"Our teams have worked tirelessly to develop new safety features (including an in-app emergency button) nationwide, establish a dedicated incident response team and re-verify the full credentials of every driver-partner on the Uber platform in Delhi."
The statement ended: "Our commitment to make transportation safe in Indian cities has never been more absolute and we won’t rest till the job is done."
The ban was enforced by Delhi authorities after a 26-year-old woman claimed a driver drove her to a secluded area and raped her.
The driver, Shiv Kumar Yadav, denies the charges.
The woman is planning to take legal action against the taxi aggregator in a US court claiming negligence.
The action will centre on Uber’s lax background checks on drivers and the woman has secured the services of well-known New York lawyer Douglas Wigdor.
Wigdor previously represented hotel maid Nafissatou Diallo, who gained a million dollar settlement from former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn over an alleged sexual assault.
https://www.travelmole.com/news_feature.php?news_id=2015024
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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