Auto-taxi unions oppose Marathi mandate, Sarnaik steps in

In Maharashtra, auto-taxi unions plan protests against a new rule requiring drivers to speak basic Marathi, citing harassment of migrant workers.

MUMBAI: Amid the state transport department’s mandate that auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers in Maharashtra must be able to speak basic Marathi, with non-compliance potentially leading to non-renewal of licences at the time of renewal, unions across Mumbai have begun mobilising for a mass protest against the directive. A key meeting of drivers has been scheduled for Monday evening.

iiMumbai, India - April 26, 2026: MNS workers distribute Marathi stickers to rickshaw drivers, to speak marathi at Kamraj Nagar bus stop, Ghatkopar east in Mumbai, India, on Sunday, April 26, 2026. (Photo by Satish Bate/ Hindustan Times) (Hindustan Times)

The Auto-rickshaw and taxi unions argue that the move is a form of harassment against migrant workers.

The directive, which proposes a Marathi language test for drivers and permit holders from May 1, has brought auto-taxi unions and the transport department into direct confrontation.

Shashank Sharad Rao, union leader who heads the Autorickshaw Chalak Malak Sanghatana Sanyukt Kruti Samiti Maharashtra (ACMSSKSM), on Sunday announced that a meeting of auto-taxi drivers opposing the mandatory Marathi requirement will be held at the Keshavrao Gore auditorium in Goregaon. “We will meet tomorrow evening and the future course of action will be decided in it,” said Rao. The union has already announced a statewide protest on May 4.

Later on Sunday evening, the transport department said that minister Pratap Sarnaik will meet representatives of auto-taxi driver unions, including leaders such as Shashank Rao and Sanjay Nirupam, on Monday afternoon. The meeting is scheduled to be held at Mantralaya.