Pokhara, 31 Aug: The Gandaki Province government received applause across the country when it brought a law related to ride sharing. The government was praised even by the public after the cabinet meeting on 30 Baisakh 2082(13 May 2025) passed the regulations legalizing ride sharing and self-driving.
However, transport entrepreneurs were not satisfied with the government’s decision. They stopped public transport from 17-19 Jestha(31 May to 2 June).
Even after the transport entrepreneurs’ protest, Chief Minister Surendra Raj Pandey did not budge. However, contrary to the spirit of federalism, the federal government held talks with the entrepreneurs and agreed to suspend the regulations issued by the Gandaki provincial government.
After receiving the letter from the federal government, Chief Minister Pandey decided on June 3 to suspend, for one month, the regulations drafted to regulate and manage ride-sharing. Although transport management within the province falls under the exclusive jurisdiction of the province, the provincial government backtracked from immediately implementing the regulations, citing the letter from the federal government.
The Chief Minister’s stance was supported not only by the public but also unanimously by the opposition in parliament. Although Chief Minister Pandey had decided to suspend the regulations for one month, nearly three months have already passed. Yet, the decision to legalize ride-sharing and self-drive services has still not been implemented.
Chief Minister Pandey, who was once praised for granting legal recognition to ride-sharing and self-drive services, is now facing criticism from the public. Voices have also been raised that the provincial government has bowed to business interests and failed to break the transport syndicate.
Although the regulations required ride-sharing services to obtain permission within one month of issuance, the government has still not been able to regulate them. Even now, in Pokhara, two-wheelers are operating freely through ride-sharing apps without legal authorization, while taxi operators continue with arbitrary fares and the syndicate system remains intact.
The Gandaki provincial government, however, has no clear plan on when the ride-sharing regulations will be implemented. The delay in implementing ride-sharing was even raised for discussion in parliament on Sunday.
Bhandari said that the government, which was once praised, is now being criticized. He asked, “Where has the implementation of the ride-sharing regulations stalled, and who is blocking it?”
