Union Cooperation Minister Amit Shah informed the Lok Sabha that the Ministry of Cooperation is promoting cooperatives as engines of employment generation, social security and grassroots economic participation, citing the launch of Bharat Taxi as a key initiative in this direction.
Shah said Bharat Taxi is India’s first cooperative-led ride-hailing platform that places drivers, called Sarathis, at the centre of ownership and value creation. Registered under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002, the platform was established on June 6, 2025 by eight national-level cooperative institutions and formally launched on February 5, 2026.
The service is currently operational in Delhi-NCR, including Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Faridabad and Ghaziabad, as well as in cities in Gujarat such as Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Somnath and Dwarka. The government plans to expand the platform across the country in phases over the next two years.
Shah said the cooperative model will generate employment for drivers and youth while strengthening local economies, with profits directly shared with drivers under a zero-commission system. Women-focused initiatives like Bike Didi and Sarthi Didi will also encourage greater participation of women in the mobility sector.
