Uber slashes prices in ten cities

In a move that could trigger a price war in the taxi aggregator market in the country, Uber has slashed fares by up to 22 per cent in 10 cities with effect from Tuesday.

These are Ahmedabad, Ajmer, Indore, Jodhpur, Mangaluru, Nagpur, Pune, Thiruvananthapuram, Udaipur, and Vizag.

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The move, according to the company, is to make Uber "the most affordable transportation option for our riders and an attractive economic opportunity for hundreds of thousands of micro-entrepreneurs on our platform".

"While fares have been slashed by nine per cent Indore and Nagpur, the same has been cut by 22 per cent in Jodhpur and Udaipur for the affordable service, UberGO," the company stated. Uber will now charge a base fare of Rs 25 instead of Rs 40 in Udaipur and Jodhpur. Also, the per-km charge has been reduced to Rs 7 from Rs 8.

"The slash in prices would a great puller for people in these towns. We want to make Uber a habit for these people. The move, we are sure, will attract a large set of new customers," said a senior official at Uber. The fare cut would bring the cost down to Rs 5 a km in Vizag, Nagpur, Indore and Ahmedabad. The other cities where tariff has been reduced include Pune, Mangaluru and Thiruvananthapuram. "With the increase in demand, drivers on the Uber platform will get busier as well," it added.

"With affordable fares, we believe Uber can be a viable alternative to people driving their own cars with all the hassle and cost that parking brings," it said. The global ride-hailing app plans to invest around $500 million (Rs 3,300 crore) in India by June this year.

The company had earlier committed to invest $1 billion in the country.

Uber founder Travis Kalanick had earlier said the Indian market might surpass either the US or China for the company.

Uber's biggest rival in India, Bengaluru-based rival Ola, had recently launched Micro, its affordable prices service, offering rides at Rs 6 per km.