Every morning in India’s metropolitan cities, commuters can be seen jostling for space in packed buses or bargaining with auto drivers who charge arbitrary fares. For most office-goers, the options are limited – standing in endless queues for the bus or opening a ride-hailing app and bracing for surge pricing and cancellations, or both.
This daily hassle reflects India’s continuing urban transportation crisis. Despite years of policies and plans, public transportation remains inadequate and overburdened in most cities. Buses – the backbone of urban mobility – are in short supply. Metros have grown rapidly in some cities, but they cover only a few corridors and cannot handle last mile travel or extended travel.
Into this chaos comes what many see as an unexpected challenger – Bharat Taxi, a co-operative mobility platform that is being pitched as an “Amul model for taxis,” where drivers are shareholders rather than gig workers governed by algorithms.
Run by Delhi-based Sahakar Taxi Cooperative Limited, headed by Amul Managing Director Jayen Mehta, the initiative is supported by the Ministry of Cooperation and key institutions like IFFCO, NAFED and GCMMF (Amul). Expected to be formally launched in January, the cooperative has an authorized share capital of Rs 300 crore, initial commitment with eight primary promoters 80 crores- Rs 10 crore each.
“It aims to benefit the two most important stakeholders. Customers get stable pricing, while drivers retain their entire earnings without paying commission. We have also ensured social security benefits like insurance for the drivers. More than 1.1 lakh drivers in Delhi-NCR and about 3,000 drivers in Rajkot have already been registered ahead of the January 1 launch,” said Ashok Thakur, chairman and one of the promoters of NAFED. “If the model is successful, we will expand it to other cities,” he said.
For drivers who perceive the changes as less than what aggregators continually tout as rule changes, the appeal seems obvious. “These platforms keep cutting fees and reject us when we are in trouble,” said Rajesh, a Delhi-based cab driver who signed up with Bharat Taxi. “Here, I don’t mind paying a small membership because ultimately we get some benefits like legal and financial assistance and low-interest vehicle loans.”
However, experts caution that Bharat Taxi will face several hurdles on its way to success. “Pricing is a core challenge. The dynamic surge models used by Ola and Uber tempt drivers with higher peak-hour earnings and passengers with off-peak discounts. Hence, passengers may choose Bharat Taxi only for fixed fares during peak hours, while drivers may go back to surge-based platforms at other times. This fragmented loyalty may hinder the co-operative’s ability to scale up,” said urban mobility expert Shreya Gadepalli.
In fact, there are already murmurs of discontent in some auto unions. “We don’t want bikes with private number plates on the app – they harm our livelihood,” said Rajendra Soni, general secretary of the Delhi Auto Rickshaw Association. He added that they are “not encouraging drivers to join the new platform”.
failed option
In fact, some skepticism has its roots in recent history. Over the past few years, tension between ride-hailing platforms and driver unions has led to driver-led alternatives emerging with mixed results.
For example, in Bengaluru, the Auto Rickshaw Drivers Union (ARDU) launched Namma Yatri on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) network in November 2022. It grew quickly, enrolling thousands of drivers and earning praise as a zero-commission success. But by the end of 2023, the union walked out, alleging that control had shifted away from the drivers.
Soon after, the union launched Metro Mitra, an app focused on metro station connectivity, developed with Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL). It offered fares set by the government ( 30 for first 2 km, After 15/km, plus A 10 app fee) and aims to restore confidence in meter-based riding. But Metro Mitra struggled to move ahead.
Rudra Murthy, general secretary of the Autorickshaw Drivers Union (ARDU), said, “Drivers did not like long wait times at low-demand stations, while passengers wanted citywide flexibility. It did not work for either side.”
Most such driver-led efforts across the country have struggled due to limited capital, weak governance and lack of larger institutional support. This is where Bharat Taxi’s collaborative level and deep-pocketed institutional support can make a difference, say experts.
Cities are in dire need of efficient and affordable alternatives. The number of buses per capita is among the lowest globally; Even in Mumbai and Delhi the recommended fleet is low. Most state transport bodies are in losses, hampered by political fare freezes, staff shortages and old vehicles. It’s no surprise that app-based cabs have taken over as the de facto public transportation system in most major cities of India.
Amit Bhatt, India Director of the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), said India Taxi should prioritize solid technology, reliability and quality of service – including clean cars, assured rides and zero cancellations. “That’s how BlueSmart won loyal users before its financial struggles due to unsustainable scaling and high capital expenditures.”
History of Transport Cooperative Societies in India
In India, urban bus services are currently largely monopolized by State Road Transport Undertakings (SRTUs). But it has not always been like this. Transport cooperatives have a long history in the country.
The roots of the co-operative movement go back to the Co-operative Societies Act of 1904, which was initially intended for credit societies, and was expanded in 1912 to allow non-credit co-operative societies. After independence, transport cooperatives were actively promoted by the government as a means of rural connectivity and employment generation.
Between the 1950s and 1970s, many small transport cooperatives emerged in states such as Kerala, Karnataka and West Bengal. Formed mostly by ex-servicemen and unemployed youth, these societies operated bus services on rural and semi-urban routes, which the SRTU found financially unviable. However, during the nationalization wave of the 1970s, most city-level bus cooperatives were absorbed into state-run corporations, strengthening public control over urban transportation.
One notable exception that survives is the “Koppa Model.” Koppa’s Transport Co-operative Society in Karnataka became a benchmark for community-owned bus services in hilly areas. Despite financial strain in recent years, it is one of the few examples of a co-operative society operating an entire fleet of stage-carriage buses on fixed routes.
Kerala offers another example. While the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation is a government entity, its city bus services have often been financially supported by the Kerala State Transport Workers’ Co-operative Society (KSTWCS). In cities like Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi, many AC and electric buses were purchased through loans provided by the co-operative society.
Elsewhere, New India Travel Co-operative Limited runs point-to-point AC bus services in Kerala, Karnataka and Puducherry, while Mandi Suket Transport Cooperative Society in Himachal Pradesh provides service on several rural routes.
“If our Bharat Taxi model is successful, it could give a bigger role to new and existing transport cooperatives across the country,” says Thakur.
In fact, globally, cooperative societies run bus services in many cities.
For example, in France, worker cooperatives known as Sociétés Cooperatives et Participatives (SCOPs) – enterprises owned and governed by their workers – operate bus services in many cities under municipal contracts. Cooperatives such as TIV and L’Oiseau Bleu run scheduled services while city governments control routes, fares, and performance standards.
A similar philosophy governs transportation administration in Bologna, Italy, where cooperatives operate within a broader “co-city” framework. Municipalities, cooperative members and citizens share responsibility for managing services, considering mobility as part of the social economy rather than just physical infrastructure. In Porto Alegre, Brazil, driver groups have been integrated into a formally regulated para-transit system.
Former IAS officer and transport expert OP Aggarwal believes that regulatory change is important to promote similar models in India. Aggarwal, who was also the lead author of the National Urban Transport Policy 2006, said, “There is a need to amend the Motor Vehicles Act to relax stage-carriage licensing. State corporations should stop owning buses and focus on governance and monitoring. This will increase efficiency and reduce costs.”
Bhatt said the Delhi government’s recent decision to bring all bus operations under the Delhi Transport Corporation by integrating the DIMTS cluster fleet creates an opportunity to rethink how urban public transport is governed.
“A cooperative model could be highly effective for the transition to electric buses,” says Bhatt. “Large cooperatives, such as Amul and others that have backed Bharat Taxi, can ensure long-term sustainability, making them ideal for managing high-capital assets like e-buses, as well as ensuring equitable, low-emission mobility.” “In addition, collective ownership creates accountability and pride in service, and shared profits encourage reliable operations.”
Gadepalli agreed. He said, “Let the cooperatives own and operate the buses, while the government handles the routes and fares. In most cities, private players fight state operators for passengers. Cooperatives align interests – because members are both workers and owners – resulting in cheaper, more reliable services, including para-transit.”
