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| India widens Uber probe as government vows overhaul of driver databases | India widens Uber probe as government vows overhaul of driver databases |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| NEW DELHI — The online car service Uber faced further pressure in India on Tuesday as New Delhi police opened criminal probes and national officials called for clampdowns on all Web-hailing taxis after allegations of rape against an Uber driver. | NEW DELHI — The online car service Uber faced further pressure in India on Tuesday as New Delhi police opened criminal probes and national officials called for clampdowns on all Web-hailing taxis after allegations of rape against an Uber driver. |
| The Delhi Commission for Women also summoned the local Uber chief, Gagan Bhatia, to their office for questioning amid the widening fallout that has revived debates over women’s safety in India. | The Delhi Commission for Women also summoned the local Uber chief, Gagan Bhatia, to their office for questioning amid the widening fallout that has revived debates over women’s safety in India. |
| The response — including a ban on Uber in New Delhi imposed Monday — could prompt further scrutiny across India and elsewhere as Uber and other online car services expand globally. | The response — including a ban on Uber in New Delhi imposed Monday — could prompt further scrutiny across India and elsewhere as Uber and other online car services expand globally. |
| On Tuesday, Thailand’s transport department also ordered Uber to cease operations because its drivers were not registered and its payment system violated local regulations. In Spain, a judge ordered a temporary suspension of Uber around the country as Madrid’s Taxi Association prepares possible legal action over alleged breaches in rules governing competition and permits. | |
| The New Delhi preliminary criminal report accuses San Francisco-based Uber of flouting local laws including failing to conduct driver background checks. On Monday, Uber’s chief executive, Travis Kalanick, promised to work with Indian authorities on issues such as vetting drivers. | |
| But that hasn’t halted the expanding crackdowns. India’s national government issued an advisory calling for controls on all unregistered taxi services, similar to Uber. New Delhi’s transport department also ordered all the GPS-enabled cab companies to file tracking data into their server. | But that hasn’t halted the expanding crackdowns. India’s national government issued an advisory calling for controls on all unregistered taxi services, similar to Uber. New Delhi’s transport department also ordered all the GPS-enabled cab companies to file tracking data into their server. |
| Even India’s transport minister, Nitin Gadkari, acknowledged it would be impossible to impose blanket regulations. | Even India’s transport minister, Nitin Gadkari, acknowledged it would be impossible to impose blanket regulations. |
| “Tomorrow if there is a train accident, we cant stop the railways,” he said. | “Tomorrow if there is a train accident, we cant stop the railways,” he said. |
| The real problem, officials and taxi companies said, remains the haphazard manner in which driving licenses are granted, and the lack of coordination between departments in sharing data about criminal records. | The real problem, officials and taxi companies said, remains the haphazard manner in which driving licenses are granted, and the lack of coordination between departments in sharing data about criminal records. |
| The Uber cab driver arrested for last week’s alleged rape, Shiv Kumar Yadav, had been charged twice earlier for sexual assault, in 2011 and 2013, police said Tuesday. | The Uber cab driver arrested for last week’s alleged rape, Shiv Kumar Yadav, had been charged twice earlier for sexual assault, in 2011 and 2013, police said Tuesday. |
| Shrikant Singh, a senior police official in the northern state Uttar Pradesh state, told reporters that Yadav has a long criminal history and has been charged previously with sexual assault, violence and possessing an illegal weapon. He was on out on bail awaiting various trials. | Shrikant Singh, a senior police official in the northern state Uttar Pradesh state, told reporters that Yadav has a long criminal history and has been charged previously with sexual assault, violence and possessing an illegal weapon. He was on out on bail awaiting various trials. |
| “We must develop a centralized computerized database of driving licenses like they have in the United Kingdom and Brazil. If drivers indulge in any crime, that information will be recorded and available in one place,” said Gadkari. “Thirty percent are bogus licenses, our system of giving licenses needs to be changed.” | “We must develop a centralized computerized database of driving licenses like they have in the United Kingdom and Brazil. If drivers indulge in any crime, that information will be recorded and available in one place,” said Gadkari. “Thirty percent are bogus licenses, our system of giving licenses needs to be changed.” |
| The rape allegations also have re-ignited concerns about women’s safety in India and the inability to provide safe transport for women in the night. Two years ago, major protests erupted after the fatal gang rape of a young woman in a moving bus. | The rape allegations also have re-ignited concerns about women’s safety in India and the inability to provide safe transport for women in the night. Two years ago, major protests erupted after the fatal gang rape of a young woman in a moving bus. |
| Despite the Uber ban, many passengers in New Delhi continued to order its cabs on Tuesday. | Despite the Uber ban, many passengers in New Delhi continued to order its cabs on Tuesday. |
| “I have just driven one Uber passenger this morning, people are still booking us because the cell phone app has apparently not shut down,” said driver Ram Swaroop Verma, 61. | “I have just driven one Uber passenger this morning, people are still booking us because the cell phone app has apparently not shut down,” said driver Ram Swaroop Verma, 61. |
| Police officers in New Delhi say that accessing records of migrant drivers’ criminal past from other states is not easy and can take a very long time because data in many states is not fully digitized. | Police officers in New Delhi say that accessing records of migrant drivers’ criminal past from other states is not easy and can take a very long time because data in many states is not fully digitized. |
| “The police verification process has to be made easy for us,” said Rajiv Vij, founder member of the Association of Radio Taxis in a press conference in New Delhi. “The data has to be online and quickly available and updated real time. That is a key lesson from this incident.” | “The police verification process has to be made easy for us,” said Rajiv Vij, founder member of the Association of Radio Taxis in a press conference in New Delhi. “The data has to be online and quickly available and updated real time. That is a key lesson from this incident.” |