Union Minister for Home and Cooperation Amit Shah on Monday, while interacting with the ‘Sarathis’ of Bharat Taxi here on Monday, said those who put in hard work and labour in their jobs should be the ones who should make profits.
According to Shah, Bharat Taxi’s objective is to help taxi owner prosper. He emphasized that the ‘Sarathi’ (driver partner) is the real owner, and thus will have the share in the profits.
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The cooperation minister expressed hope that in the coming three years, ‘Bharat Taxi’ will be available across all the municipal corporations and the nation at large.
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He said Bharat Taxi has been formed with five major cooperatives of the country on board. With the number of ‘Sarathis’ increasing, any ‘Sarathi’ who wishes to become a partner will gain ownership rights by purchasing shares worth Rs 500.
The minister added that when elections for the Board of Directors of Bharat Taxi are held, certain seats will be reserved for the driver partners of the cooperative.
According to Shah, once the Sarathis become part of the Board of Directors, they themselves will safeguard, and represent the interests and concerns of the driver partners.
He said the objective of the initiative is not to earn huge profits to the likes of the private companies, but to empower drivers.
Shah said the policies of the cooperative will also be decided by the driver partners.
The Home Minister said that 20 per cent of Bharat Taxi’s total earnings will be deposited into the cooperative’s account as the ‘Sarathis’ capital, and 80 percent of the money will be returned to the drivers accounts on the basis of the number of kilometres the taxi has been driven.
Notably, the initial three years will go into the expansion of Bharat Taxi, and after that, whatever profit is generated, 20 per cent of it will remain with the cooperative, and 80 per cent will be go back to driver partners.
Shah said Bharat Taxi cooperative is going to be transparent by providing every information to the driver partners through notifications, and this will make it the most transparent cab service globally.
The HM explained that in Bharat Taxi, a base rate will be created by combining the cost of the auto, petrol consumption, and minimum profit, and the service will not operate below this rate.
He also mentioned the concept of ‘Sarathi Didi’ (lady driver), that has been envisioned in this initiative.
The ‘Sarathi Didi’ facility of Bharat Taxi will make women drivers partners self-reliant and will also ensure the safety of women passengers.
Shah also informed that in the days to come, a provision will be made in the Bharat Taxi app under the name ‘ Sarathi Didi’ to give priority to a solo female passenger, assigning to a ‘Sarathi Didi’.
In a message to the Sarathis, Shah said that they must never refer to themselves as drivers, and call themselves ‘Sarathi’ instead, with pride.
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