Bharat Taxi drives into competition lane with cooperative model

The government-backed cooperative ride-hailing service Bharat Taxi has launched in NCR and Gujarat, onboarding 2.5 lakh drivers with a zero-commission, no-surge model

More than a decade after India first got a taste of cab on the app, a disruptor has entered the market trying to change the ride-hailing landscape. 

The Ministry of Cooperation formally launched Bharat Taxi, a government-backed service, in the national capital region (NCR) and some parts of Gujarat on Thursday even as the market was sensing the arrival of new competition for some weeks now. 

In three years, Bharat Taxi promises to go pan-India, sending out a message of intensifying competition. With the new player likely to offer discounted pricing without any surge rates, experts are anticipating a tariff war. 

At the launch, Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah clarified that the government is not entering the taxi sector and that it’s a cooperative initiative. Taxi drivers are the owners, he stressed. 

American cab aggregator Uber, which came into India in 2013 and holds a leading position, remained silent on the latest development. Bhavish Aggarwal-led Ola, which launched in 2010 backed by foreign investors, too did not comment. 

The uniqueness of Bharat Taxi, apart from being the first cooperative-driven service, is its zero-commission model. That is, a driver does not have to give a commission to the platform owner. The incumbents mostly operate on a combination of commission and subscription models.  

 

Shah said the platform had garnered an overwhelming response. During the pilot stage itself, it has onboarded more than 250,000 drivers across cars, autos, and bikes and over 850,000 customers in Delhi-NCR alone. 

 

Sahkar Taxi Cooperative, touted as the world's first national mobility cooperative owned by drivers, had kickstarted beta consumer trials of the service in December 2025, marking its soft launch. 

 

"In three years, Bharat Taxi will be rolled out across the country, from Kashmir to Kanyakumari and Dwarka to Kamakhya," Shah said, adding that there would be no additional fee on the platform including the platform fee, surge fee, or any other hidden charges. 

 

According to data from the ministry, approximately ₹10 crore has been distributed directly to drivers and more than 10,000 rides are being completed daily on the platform. In comparison, last year, ride-hailing platform Rapido said it was notching 4.3 million rides per day across its motorbikes, auto rickshaws and cars, which is triple of Ola’s count and about 40 per cent higher than Uber’s. In terms of app downloads, on Google Play Store, while Ola, Uber, and Rapido had over 100 million downloads each, Bharat Taxi so far has over 500,000 downloads.

 

A quick comparison showed that Bharat Taxi cabs in Delhi were priced lower than Uber, while closer to Ola and Rapido on many routes.      

 

Bharat Taxi drivers, called ‘sarathis', unlike partners on other platforms, are members and co-owners of the cooperative. They hold shares and elect leadership. The platform has 150 women drivers (sarathi didis).

 

The new platform is expected to witness a range of benefits being given to gig workers including a personal accident insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh and a family health insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh.

 

Cab aggregator unions have welcomed the move. Shaik Salauddin of the Indian Federation of App-Based Transport Workers (IFAT) and the Telangana Gig and Platform Workers Union (TGPWU) said: “We strongly welcome Bharat Taxi as a landmark step towards ending the exploitative commission-based model in ride-hailing services. For the first time, drivers are being recognised as owners, not expendable gig workers. This cooperative model has the potential to restore dignity, ensure fair incomes, and provide long-overdue social security to transport workers.”

 

Among the private players, Rapido welcomed the launch of Bharat Taxi, referring to it as another addition to the range of mobility options available to the public. “As the mobility ecosystem continues to grow, models that emphasise choice, ease of booking, and dignified earning opportunities for drivers help meet diverse commuter needs across cities. Over the past 24 months, Rapido has been a SaaS-based subscription model that enables auto and cab drivers on the platform to manage fares, rides, and earnings independently, without commissions. Bharat Taxi’s adoption of a similar SaaS-led approach further strengthens Rapido’s long-held view that such models are not just viable but also highly relevant to the future of ride-hailing.” 

 

An Uber executive, who did not want to be named, said the company provides a range of services and differentiates itself from other players with its tech-enabled support system, customer service and grievance redressal.