Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Thursday, February 5 launched Bharat Taxi at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi, marking the formal entry of India’s first cooperative-based ride-hailing platform into the market.
The launch follows a two-month pilot programme in Delhi-NCR and Gujarat, where the platform was tested as a driver-owned alternative to private ride-hailing aggregators including Ola, Uber and Rapido.
Bharat Taxi operates on a zero-commission and surge-free pricing model, with fares positioned at up to 30 per cent lower than private competitors. Instead of per-ride commissions, drivers pay a fixed daily app access fee of ₹30.
Drivers, referred to as ‘Sarathis’, hold five shares each in the cooperative structure, making them stakeholders in the platform under the ‘Sarathi Hi Malik’ (Driver is the Owner) model.
Registered under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002, Bharat Taxi is backed by eight major cooperative organisations, including Amul and IFFCO.
Since pilot operations began on December 2, more than 300,000 drivers have registered on the platform along with over 100,000 users. The service currently completes more than 10,000 rides daily across Delhi-NCR and Gujarat, with drivers earning approximately Rs 10 crore in cumulative payouts.
The platform includes welfare measures such as health and accident insurance coverage of Rs 5 lakh each, retirement savings options, and seven operational support centres in Delhi.
Women’s participation is being promoted through the ‘Bike Didi’ initiative, with over 150 female drivers enrolled so far. Safety infrastructure includes 35 grievance booths set up in collaboration with Delhi Police.
During the launch, Shah announced that Bharat Taxi would expand nationwide within three years, covering regions from Kashmir to Kanyakumari.
The service offers ride bookings across two-wheeler, three-wheeler and four-wheeler categories through mobile applications available on Android and iOS platforms.
Drivers are not bound by exclusivity agreements and are allowed to operate simultaneously on other ride-hailing platforms.
