MUMBAI, May 21 -- It is possible you might find fewer auto rickshaws on roads today as auto rickshaw unions across Mumbai and Maharashtra will be protesting outside Regional Transport Offices (RTOs) against the government's recent decision to approve e-bike taxi operations. In the city, the Mumbai Auto Rickshaw Taximen's Union announced a protest at the Andheri RTO office at 11am on Wednesday. Simultaneous demonstrations are planned at RTOs across Konkan, Vidarbha, Western Maharashtra, and Marathwada. "Even before e-bike taxis were approved, regular bikes were operating as taxis. There will be no control of them, which will be a major safety issue for passengers. This will also impact 15 lakh auto rickshaw drivers and their families across the state. We want the government to withdraw their decision to approve e-bike taxis," said union leader Shashank Sharad Rao. Following a cabinet meeting in April, the Maharashtra government approved the transport department's proposal to permit the operation of e-bike taxis. The move is being positioned by the government as a way to promote green mobility and generate employment for the youth through self-employment. The unions opposing the move call it "unilateral" and "unjust" as it endangers the livelihoods of auto-rickshaw drivers. "This approval was granted without consulting any of the existing unions. It's not just unfair, it's a threat to our daily survival," said a member of the Joint Action Committee of Auto Rickshaw Driver-Owner Associations of Maharashtra. There are over 400,000 autos in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region and 1.2 million in Maharashtra. Union leaders argue that the entry of e-bikes into the passenger transport market in the state could destabilise the fragile income of rickshaw drivers, who are already burdened by rising fuel prices and inflation. They are demanding the immediate rollback of the e-bike taxi policy and urged the government to discuss with all stakeholders before implementing such transformative measures....