Overview
- The state transport department issued the final amendment notification on August 12 that inserts “working knowledge of Marathi” into Rule 4(4), adds Rule 22(3A) for app-based motor cabs, and changes Rules 78 and 85 for permit-holders and renewals.
- Drivers who fail a local verification will receive a one-month notice to acquire the skill, face suspension of the relevant authorisation on their driving licence for up to three months if they do not comply, and risk revocation for continued non-compliance.
- The requirement explicitly covers app-aggregator drivers for platforms such as Ola, Uber and Rapido, bringing traditional taxis, autorickshaws and app cabs under the same language rule.
- The government ran a state-backed 105-day training programme through RTOs and Marathi literary bodies that officials say trained over 110,000 non-Marathi-speaking drivers and scheduled certificate events for August 17.
- The change was made as an amendment to the 1989 Maharashtra Motor Vehicles Rules rather than a new law, and the notification preserves procedural safeguards such as written reasons and an opportunity to be heard while prompting immediate verification drives after the August 15 deadline.