CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government has moved a petition in the Madras High Court appealing for a ban on two-wheeler taxis.

The state government in its petition said that the two-wheeler taxis cannot be considered safe for commercial purposes as it puts safety at risk for the consumers travelling in it.

The Tamil Nadu Transport department had started seizing bike-taxis ever since the Rapido group launched the operation of two-wheeler taxis in 2019.

The department had also written to Google, Apple India and Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CRET-In) directing them to remove the Rapido app from their platforms.

However, the Rapido, which is an app-based operating company, obtained a stay against this directive and the court ordered the Tamil Nadu Transport department to frame rules for regulating bike-taxi operations in the state.

The Union Transport Ministry also directed the respective state governments to frame their own guidelines after it released aggregator guidelines that aim to regulate taxi, auto and bike services provided by Ola, Uber and Rapido as well as other mobile apps.

The Transport Commissionerate has filed a petition in the Madras High Court and said that it had sent a proposal on aggregator guidelines to the government and the final guidelines was expected.

The Tamil Nadu Transport department has sought directions from the court to restrain Rapido from connecting private bike owners with commuters.

The court has adjourned the case for next four weeks.