Centre launches ‘Bharat Taxi’ to take on Ola and Uber with India’s first cooperative cab network

Aiming to end driver exploitation and high commissions, Bharat Taxi will empower owner-drivers under a cooperative model, offering commuters a transparent, government-backed alternative.

The Central government has unveiled “Bharat Taxi”, the nation’s first cooperative taxi service, designed to offer both drivers and commuters a fairer, more transparent alternative to private platforms like Ola and Uber.

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Developed jointly by the Union Ministry of Cooperation and the National e-Governance Division (NeGD), Bharat Taxi will be operated by Sahakar Taxi Cooperative Limited, established in June 2025 with a starting capital of ₹300 crore. The initiative aims to restore control to drivers by eliminating exploitative commission models and putting them in charge of their own earnings.

Unlike private cab aggregators, Bharat Taxi drivers will not pay hefty platform commissions that often consume 20-25% of their income. Instead, they will function under a membership-based system, contributing only a small daily, weekly, or monthly fee for platform maintenance. This, the government believes, will help drivers take home more of what they earn while ensuring competitive fares for riders.

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The pilot phase will roll out in Delhi this November with 650 vehicles driven by their owners. If successful, the service will expand nationwide by December, targeting 20 major cities, including Mumbai, Pune, Bhopal, Lucknow, and Jaipur. The goal is to onboard 5,000 drivers initially, scaling up to 1 lakh drivers by 2030, with operations extending to district and rural areas.

Oversight will be provided by a governing council led by Jayen Mehta, Managing Director of the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (Amul), with Rohit Gupta, Deputy MD of the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC), serving as Vice Chairman.

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