[mi2n]

Originally Posted by SwatiS

This is how riots start.(

Don't you see that the riot has already started! It's just that you have not been personally affected yet. I'm sorry and do admit that a part my post traversed the limits of sanity, but my blood boils seeing the common man suffer from motivated hooliganism and the State's utter failure to protect it's own innocent citizens and their property. I can't speak for all, but I'm really tired of hiding behind the helplessness/carelessness excuse. Please also note that the purported offenders are also Indian citizens who does not enjoy / deserve any extra privilege over what you and me are bestowed with. Life is hard and sometimes unfair for most of us in one way or the other and I do not believe that the life of the Ladakhi people are in any way harder than the locals of the thousands of poor, remote villages scattered across the country. If they have to battle the harsh winters others have to cope with floods, famines, etc.

[phamilyman]

Folks,

A reminder - only 4 of us have posted here:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Thups...27844930654952

Please post here nicely and get the message across. These things are not solved by hot headed antagonism but asking the relevant folks to step in.

Hon. Chhewang has headed the all-powerful LAHDC and its his fanpage - it is time for involving the right seniors to step in and solve matters. Else email him if that works for you.

Originally Posted by Monkeyboy4u

I will make an "unwritten rule" that you cannot drive your car through Delhi till the time you hire a Delhi driver.. how does that sound ?

Rules cannot be unwritten ! Rules should be concise, clear and unambiguous and clearly mentioned !! People cannot have their own interpretation of rules.

I slightly disagree here - there's a subtlety here. Everywhere on the net the new "rules" of the taxi drivers association (which all other associations agreed to) have been shared.

I would have expected some sort of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokku_kooli types tamasha, but to stone even accompanying vehicles and try and pull out people out of cars is attempt to murder.

[loki]

Wow. My sympathies to those affected. Thankfully, nothing serious/ fatal occurred. But seems like a lot of mental trauma Hope those thugs who caused the damage are made to pay soon!.

Sad that the actions of a few brings ill-repute to many.

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

as travellers, we do need to conform to local rules, whether written or unwritten.

It is definitely wise to CONFIRM to local practices (to ensure one's safety). Especially considering that you can never depend on the police to do their job. Whether some of these local laws make sense (OR NOT) is the bigger debate.

Yes, the Ladakhi (and Sikkim, and other mountain areas) economy is fragile - thats why the government subsidises a lot of things for them. But granting them monopoly over certain functions (taxi, tour operations) is not the way to go. And I don't need to be a socio-economics expert to say that.

Supporting these 'local' laws and having a system where the 'local' politicians and 'local' police let the 'local' thugs run around unchecked is pure anarchy. It is akin to the goons in Mumbai who were violent against workers from North India - I suppose that their argument was also similar ie; "the 'local' Mumbai economy is fragile blah blah and all jobs should goto 'local' Mumbaikars only...". It goes against everything that this country is supposed to stand for.

There will be a big drop in tourist numbers for sure. But I sincerely hope things resolve soon.

[phamilyman]

I have just posted the following message. Please use it as a template and write in to thupstan.chhewang@sansad.nic.in, thupstanc@yahoo.co.in yourselves, requesting for a solution.

Respected Honorable Thupstan Chhewang Sir,


I am writing to you as the MP for Ladakh to request your intervention in this issue which seems to be taking an ugly turn. I would like to bring to your notice, an attack against tourists in Ladakh.


More details are available at :
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/street...axi-mafia.html

If people driving their own cars are not safe from hooliganism and innocent people are being attacked with iron rods, it is really unfortunate. It is spreading all over social media.



Over social media, many folks have canceled or postponed their trip plans for Ladakh. People of Ladakh will lose out on the tourism revenue the region needs, and everyone else will miss out on visiting the heaven that Ladakh is. I believe such issues are best solved by the wise counsel of elders such as yourselves, who can work out a just and fair solution that promotes brotherhood and does not involve violence.


Jai hind!

PS: please don't thank this post - write to Hon. chhewang. Let's get this solved! Just ranting here ain't solving nothing.

[Shivanshu]

https://m.facebook.com/pages/Office-...28?sk=timeline If anyone wants to write here specially the one who have been victimized with this incident, the above link is of the Deputy Commissioner, Leh. Though I am not sure about the authenticity of the Facebook ID.
Also I am wondering if anyone who were involved in this mess, do you have any video or registration number of a cab or so?

[Rocky_Balboa]

I am with the families/ individuals who have to go through this harrowing thing. For my part, I have shared this on my facebook page and lodged a complaint with Ministry of Tourism in pgportal.

Let's get this resolved.

[diyaneesh]

I've foreseen this coming towards private vehicles too when the news about driving the self rental cars in ladakh region came out. But, not at this magnitude. They should have given a notice/warning or some circular kind of thing through an appropriate channel to make everyone aware of the situation.

It doesn't matter which penal code you are practicing.These are sheer acts of extreme hooliganism. I don't understand why the local authorities are turning blind eye on this issue even after witnessing the damage that took place. They should be the first ones who will be offering required help.

I guess these taxi guys are still living in stone age and are unaware of this very thing called "internet" through which all their stupid & dirty activities are reaching to a wide audience in a blip. What are these guys trying to prove? God forbid, what if something happened to anyone in those cars? If you think people coming to your place by driving their own cars is a threat to your economy, then there are many peaceful ways to convey your view or to protest against it. The path chosen by them is not at all admissible.

I am a kind of guy who loves to go the corner of the city or to goa on wheels. These guys are in no position to dictate me to the change the way i live. A trip to ladakh by road was always on the cards and in fact we had a discussion about it yesterday. For now i am flushing out the thought which will endanger my loved ones because of someone's madness. I'll not let anyone in my reach to visit this place until this issue is resolved.

Though this won't make a significant difference right away, it will make its impact soon it start gaining strength. I wrote to the MP on the provided id already and will share this to as much as possible. At the same time we should make those people aware about all this happening and let them know a storm in the for of a boycott is coming their way.They will repent soon when the tourist numbers plunge down at a rapid pace.

Originally Posted by Distant Second

This country has gone to the dogs!

Wouldn't it be so much simpler to collectively emigrate to a better country and abandon the mostly corrupt citizens of this country to inflight to their doom?

You Spoke my mind.

[Hammer & Anvil]

Are people mistaking the locals anger with rented cars with their ability to drive anywhere in the country?
Of course you can drive anywhere.
Just dont take rented cars to areas that local taxis dont like you to.
In other words do your homework about local laws and customs before you undertake a visit of this magnitude.

[mayankk]

Originally Posted by Hammer & Anvil

Are people mistaking the locals anger with rented cars with their ability to drive anywhere in the country?
Of course you can drive anywhere.
Just dont take rented cars to areas that local taxis dont like you to.
In other words do your homework about local laws and customs before you undertake a visit of this magnitude.

What local law?
And, this does not qualify for a local custom. No shoes in my house, yes. Don't barf to show appreciation of a good meal, yes. But not this.
If local taxi guys want to charge more than what it would cost to take a self drive, I would take a self drive.
And no local has the right to touch my own car.
Period.
As far as my own opinion goes, you can have your hills and views. I'll just visit when you're groveling.

[classact]

Thank God, you guys are safe. Sad to see this behavior of local policemen all over India. They always go hand in hand with locals no matter whose side the mistake is. Having video grabs or pics of these goons will go a long way into bringing them to justice.

[Sem80-88]

Local laws , his law , community law, taxi law what are we coming too . Are the people who are saying we should check these laws before going/travelling in India , REAL. Might as well tear up the constitution and the IPC .
Disappointed that people think like this . Wrong is wrong no matter what , there is no justification PERIOD.

[humyum]

Originally Posted by Hammer & Anvil

Are people mistaking the locals anger with rented cars with their ability to drive anywhere in the country?
Of course you can drive anywhere.
Just dont take rented cars to areas that local taxis dont like you to.
In other words do your homework about local laws and customs before you undertake a visit of this magnitude.

Dude, local taxiwala's won't like rented cars coming to their areas and stealing their business in any part of this country, so now we finish the concept of rental cars ?

There is no homework, Ladakh is a part of India and visiting Ladakh is like visiting any place in India, its not Taxiwala occupied territory (TOT) where in they dictate the rules.

[Dry Ice]

Originally Posted by phamilyman

I have just posted the following message. Please use it as a template and write in to thupstan.chhewang@sansad.nic.in, thupstanc@yahoo.co.in yourselves, requesting for a solution.



PS: please don't thank this post - write to Hon. chhewang. Let's get this solved! Just ranting here ain't solving nothing.

Emailed. But what if he/his family owns a fleet of taxis? Will he help the 'outsiders' or 'locals'?

[funkykar]

This act is very cowardly!! Like Parag earlier said, never ever found any taxi/taxi driver to be rude or intimidating. Have driven to Ladakh twice already and all that is left is sweet memories of the region and people.

I hope this is not the result of an altercation that may have happened knowingly/unknowingly, especially since the self driven cars were present. When they don't allow(or should I say 'like') self driven cars, why should one take it there? This is as good as inviting trouble. The later attacks on the private vehicles could be related to those self driven cars as they saw the entire convoy as one group and they were pissed off by the entire group. Again, I re-iterate, whether self driven or private, such acts are totally cowardly and uncalled for.

I don't think the intention of this incident was to primarily target private vehicles. If the entire convoy was of private vehicles, this may never have happened in my opinion. Have there been any other members from here who returned from Ladakh in last few days?

[mpksuhas]

Originally Posted by Dry Ice

Emailed. But what if he/his family owns a fleet of taxis? Will he help the 'outsiders' or 'locals'?

Emailed.

Yes, there is an outside chance of that.

However as Phamilyman mentioned, it is anyways better than just ranting on a thread. Atleast we are marking our protest and making them know that the issue has got widespread publicity.