Amit Shah rides Bharat Taxi in Gandhinagar after Gujarat launch
Synopsis
Home Minister Amit Shah did not just launch Bharat Taxi — he rode one. The cooperative cab platform, now live across 11 Gujarat cities with 7 lakh driver-members nationwide, aims to cut out commission-driven aggregators by making drivers shareholders. A planned expansion to 500-plus cities within two years sets up a direct challenge to Ola and Uber.
Key Takeaways
Amit Shah , CM Bhupendra Patel , and Dy CM Harsh Sanghavi rode a Bharat Taxi from Mahatma Mandir to Circuit House in Gandhinagar on 27 June .
Bharat Taxi is a cooperative platform that makes drivers shareholders rather than commission-based operators.
The service is live in 11 Gujarat cities across two-wheelers, auto-rickshaws, and four-wheelers.
The platform has enrolled around 7 lakh driver-members and more than 37 lakh customers nationwide.
Bharat Taxi plans to expand to more than 500 cities and towns across India within two years .
MoUs were signed with Gujarat Metro Rail Corporation , Adani Airport Holdings , Airports Authority of India , and others to integrate with transport infrastructure.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, and Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi on Saturday, 27 June took a symbolic ride in a Bharat Taxi from Mahatma Mandir to Circuit House in Gandhinagar, shortly after formally launching the cooperative ride-hailing platform in the state. The gesture underscored the government's push to position Bharat Taxi as a driver-owned alternative to conventional app-based cab aggregators.
What Bharat Taxi Is and How It Works
Unlike commission-driven platforms, Bharat Taxi is structured as a cooperative, making drivers — referred to as 'Sarathis' — shareholders and owners rather than service providers dependent on platform fees. Home Minister Shah said at the launch that the model was designed to end the exploitation of both drivers and passengers. The platform has already enrolled around 7 lakh driver-members nationwide and more than 37 lakh customers.
Gujarat Rollout: Cities and Categories
In Gujarat, Bharat Taxi has been launched across 11 cities — Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot, Anand, Bhavnagar, Amreli, Mehsana, Jamnagar, and Valsad. Operations span three vehicle categories: two-wheelers, auto-rickshaws, and four-wheelers. Shah announced plans to expand the service to more than 500 cities and towns across India within the next two years.
What the Leaders Said
Chief Minister Patel highlighted the structural shift the cooperative model represents: 'For years, taxi drivers continued to provide services, but they had no share in the profits of the companies,' he said, adding that Bharat Taxi seeks to transform drivers into stakeholders. Shah echoed the sentiment, framing the initiative as a direct extension of India's cooperative movement into the urban mobility sector.
The Driver's Account
The driver who ferried the three leaders described the experience as 'unforgettable.' He recalled that Shah, Patel, and Sanghavi asked him his name and how long he had been associated with the service. 'It feels very good. The Bharat Taxi app is excellent, and all of us drivers are going to benefit from it,' he said. He added: 'I am very happy. I never imagined this would happen. My fortune has opened.'
Institutional Partnerships Signed
The launch event saw the signing of memorandums of understanding with several organisations, including Gujarat Metro Rail Corporation, Gujarat State Cooperative Bank, Adani Airport Holdings, the Airports Authority of India, Western Railway's Ahmedabad Division, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, and Gujarat Police. These tie-ups are aimed at integrating Bharat Taxi with existing transport infrastructure and public services across the state. With institutional backing and a cooperative ownership model, Bharat Taxi's next test will be whether it can scale beyond Gujarat and challenge entrenched national players on both price and driver retention.
Point of View
The Bharatiya Janata Party's home turf, with the Home Minister in the back seat is a calculated signal. But symbolism aside, the real question is execution: India's cooperative sector has a long history of governance challenges at scale, and taking on Ola and Uber in 500 cities within two years is an ambitious target that will require more than MoUs and ministerial rides. The driver-shareholder model could genuinely improve earnings if platform costs stay low, but that depends on whether the cooperative can resist the same commission-creep pressures that plague private aggregators once growth slows.
NationPress
27 Jun 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Bharat Taxi and how is it different from Ola or Uber?
Bharat Taxi is a cooperative ride-hailing platform that makes drivers shareholders and owners of the service rather than commission-dependent operators. Unlike Ola or Uber, it does not charge drivers a platform commission, aiming instead to distribute profits among driver-members.
Where has Bharat Taxi been launched in Gujarat?
Bharat Taxi has been launched in 11 Gujarat cities: Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot, Anand, Bhavnagar, Amreli, Mehsana, Jamnagar, and Valsad. It operates across two-wheelers, auto-rickshaws, and four-wheelers.
How many drivers and customers has Bharat Taxi enrolled so far?
Bharat Taxi has enrolled around 7 lakh driver-members and more than 37 lakh customers nationwide, according to organisers at the 27 June launch event in Gandhinagar.
What did Amit Shah say about Bharat Taxi at the launch?
Home Minister Amit Shah said the initiative was designed to end the exploitation of drivers and passengers by making drivers — referred to as 'Sarathis' — owners and shareholders in the cooperative. He also announced plans to expand to more than 500 cities and towns across India within two years.
Which organisations signed MoUs with Bharat Taxi at the Gujarat launch?
MoUs were signed with Gujarat Metro Rail Corporation, Gujarat State Cooperative Bank, Adani Airport Holdings, the Airports Authority of India, Western Railway's Ahmedabad Division, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, and Gujarat Police, to integrate the platform with transport infrastructure and public services.
