Central Government Launches ‘Bharat Taxi’ Service, Posing Big Competition to Ola and Uber

In Brief

• Government's new 'Bharat Taxi' service

• Big competition for Ola-Uber

• What will be the fare and booking process?

The central government has launched 'Bharat Taxi' as the first cooperative taxi service in India. This service is designed to directly challenge private cab aggregators like Ola and Uber. This initiative, developed under the Ministry of Cooperation and the National e-Governance Division (NeGD), is likely to bring significant changes in the taxi service sector.

Reasons for Starting the Service

In recent years, there have been numerous complaints about private app-based taxi services. These primarily include the following issues: dirty vehicles, expensive fares, arbitrary ride cancellations, and sudden price hikes. High commission rates charged by private companies from drivers. Now, Bharat Taxi Platform is trying to change this situation. Unlike private aggregators, Bharat Taxi drivers will not pay any commission on their trips.

Operations and Rental Model

Commission-Free: Drivers will not pay any commission on their trip earnings.

Subscription Model: Instead, drivers will work under a subscription model by paying a nominal daily, weekly, or monthly fee. The government believes this will increase drivers' income.

Cheaper Fares: Due to the absence of commission, rides on this platform are likely to be cheaper than Ola, Uber, and Rapido.

Cooperative Initiative and Usage

Bharat Taxi will operate as a cooperative initiative rather than a private company. This platform will be operated by 'Sahakar Taxi Cooperative Limited'. Like Ola and Uber, this service can be booked by installing the app from the Google Play Store for Android and the Apple Store for iPhone. This service will be available in Gujarati and Marathi in addition to Hindi and English.