- Union Home and Cooperation Minister launches India’s first cooperative ride-hailing platform in Gujarat, declaring ‘Sarathis’ as owners—not merely drivers
- Shah says Bharat Taxi will not retreat before predatory competition, charts expansion to over 500 cities and towns in the next two years
- Zero-commission cooperative model promises dignity, social security, insurance, loans and direct income for more than seven lakh Sarathis
- Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel hails Gujarat’s cooperative legacy as the launchpad for a people-centric mobility transformation
- Bharat Taxi signs strategic MoUs with Metro, Airports, Railways, Gujarat Police and cooperative institutions to build an integrated transport ecosystem
- Chairman Dr Jayen Mehta says the platform is not merely an app but a nationwide cooperative movement inspired by ‘Sahakar Se Samriddhi’
R MANICKAVASAGAM
GANDHINAGAR, JUNE 27
“Stay with Bharat Taxi, Bharat Taxi will always stand with you.” With this stirring appeal to lakhs of taxi drivers and commuters, Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Saturday launched Bharat Taxi, India’s first cooperative-owned ride-hailing platform, asserting that the country’s mobility future must belong to “Sarathis” who are shareholders rather than merely drivers.
Launching the platform at the Mahatma Mandir Convention Centre in Gandhinagar in the presence of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi, senior ministers, cooperative leaders and thousands of Sarathis, Shah described Bharat Taxi as a transformational step towards realising Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of “Sahakar Se Samriddhi.”
Drawing a sharp distinction from private aggregators, Shah declared: “This is the fundamental difference between the concepts of ‘driver’ and ‘Sarathi’—private companies see them only as drivers, while Bharat Taxi gives them the respect of being ‘Sarathis’. In Bharat Taxi, Sarathis are not merely drivers, but shareholders; they are not dependent on any app company.”
Taking on established ride-hailing firms, Shah alleged that temporary fare cuts were aimed at stalling the cooperative initiative.
“The companies which are today trying to create market pressure by reducing fares are doing so only to stop the progress of Bharat Taxi… But I want to say clearly today that their wish will never be fulfilled. Bharat Taxi will continue to move forward with the resolve of service, the strength of cooperation and the trust of Sarathis,” he asserted.
Calling upon both drivers and commuters to support the platform, Shah said: “The biggest responsibility of making Bharat Taxi successful rests with Sarathis and customers. If we want a long-term, reliable and just transport system, making Bharat Taxi successful is the collective responsibility of all of us.”
He announced that Bharat Taxi would expand to more than 500 cities and towns within the next two years, while services would begin in seven major cities before July 31, making the cooperative platform a national mobility network.
Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel described the initiative as another milestone in Gujarat’s rich cooperative tradition and said the State was proud to become the launchpad for a mobility model that combines economic empowerment with social security for drivers.
Bharat Taxi Chairman and GCMMF Managing Director Dr Jayen Mehta termed the launch a defining moment for India’s cooperative movement.
“The concept of Sahkar Taxi is a new vision for the cooperative sector. Amit Shah’s vision is that when people work together as members of a cooperative institution, extraordinary and unimaginable results can be achieved,” he said.
Highlighting the platform’s rapid growth, Mehta revealed: “In less than five months, nearly seven lakh Sarathis have joined us, while 38 lakh to 40 lakh customers have registered on our app.”
He announced that Gujarat alone had enrolled over 1.5 lakh Sarathis and more than seven lakh customers before the formal launch.
Outlining the expansion roadmap, Mehta said: “Within one year, Bharat Taxi will reach the capitals of 30 major states, the country’s principal urban centres and more than 125 cities,” adding that the objective was to ensure “every rupee spent by a customer should go directly into the bank account of our Sarathi brothers.”
Summing up the platform’s larger mission, he remarked: “Trust for passengers, respect for Sarathis and new opportunities for society—this is the identity of Bharat Taxi. It is not just an application, but a unique platform that connects people with new dreams. Bharat Taxi is not merely a project; it is a movement that is giving new momentum to the cooperative sector.”
During the event, Bharat Taxi signed strategic Memorandums of Understanding with Gujarat Metro Rail Corporation, Gujarat State Cooperative Bank, Adani Airport Holdings Limited, Airports Authority of India, Western Railway, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation and the Gujarat State Traffic Police to integrate services across airports, railways, Metro stations and urban transport systems.
Operating under the ‘Sarathi Hi Maalik’ philosophy, Bharat Taxi follows a zero-commission cooperative model, providing insurance, concessional vehicle loans, pension benefits, welfare support and direct income to drivers while offering passengers surge-free, technology-enabled transport services.
