End of the road for Kolkata's beloved yellow taxis

AFP English

It's the end of the road for Kolkata's beloved yellow taxis. Numbers of the Hindustan Ambassador, which first rolled off the assembly line in the 1950s, are dwindling fast, and a recent court ruling means that those that do remain will be forced off India's roads entirely in the next three years. "The end of these taxi cars also marks our end," says Kailash Sahani, who has sat behind the wheel of an Ambassador cab for the past four decades.

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00:30We book a taxi on our mobile phone, it's an AC car.

00:35We walk, who asks for a taxi?

00:40The taxi's tail is over,

00:42even though this was the capital of Bengal.

00:45The capital of Bengal was the embassy.

00:49Its tail is over.

00:51I've been driving for 40 years.

00:53I've been driving a car.

00:55I have a license for 84.

00:58I've been driving for 85.

01:01I've been driving for 40 years.

01:04I'm almost 70 years old.

01:08I'll leave when I'm 80.

01:11What else can I do?

01:12I won't be able to drive anymore.

01:16The taxi's tail is over,

01:18so are we.

01:29We've been in Kolkata for 15 years.

01:31We'll be in trouble if this car flies.

01:34We're doing all this work

01:36because if we leave,

01:38it'll be difficult for the public.

01:40The public won't get a car,

01:42and they won't be able to carry luggage.

01:44That's why we'll be in trouble.

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