Illegal rentals: 70 pvt vehicles booked in Calangute since Jan

NT Reporter

Calangute

The Calangute Traffic Cell on Tuesday detained a car being driven by a tourist after it was found to be a privately registered vehicle allegedly operating as a rent-a-car without the required permit.

The tourist said the vehicle had been rented through an online website and was handed over to him at the Manohar International Airport, Mopa. During verification, traffic officials found that the vehicle was privately registered and was being used for commercial purposes.

Calangute police inspector (traffic) Brendon D’Souza said that the driver would be booked under Section 192 of the Motor Vehicles Act for operating a vehicle in violation of permit conditions.

“The Calangute Traffic Cell has booked as many as 70 privately registered vehicles illegally operating as rent-a-vehicles since January 2026,” he said.

Meanwhile, stakeholders from the rent-a-car industry said that the number of private vehicles being rented out through online websites without valid licences or permits
is growing. They alleged that despite repeatedly bringing the issue to the notice of authorities, little action has been taken against the operators of such websites.

Nitesh Chodankar, a rent-a-car stakeholder, said that many of these vehicles do not have speed governors installed, leading to reckless and unsafe driving by tourists. “Hundreds of websites are illegally facilitating the renting of private vehicles and continue to operate openly despite complaints,” he said.

The stakeholders further alleged that the Transport Department has failed to take cognisance of complaints submitted by legitimate operators, allowing the illegal business to flourish unchecked.