Why Ola and Uber drivers are going on strike from tomorrow: 10 things to know

Drivers from cab aggregators, Uber and Ola, have threatened to go on an indefinite strike starting Sunday midnight in major cities of the country including, Mumbai, New Delhi, Bengaluru, Pune among others. 

So, there is a huge possibility that starting from Monday, booking an Ola or Uber for going office would become a difficult task due to non availability of cabs. 

While, you can check out other taxi apps here, so that the strike won't impact you negatively, belowe we have listed out 10 things you should know about the Ola, Uber drivers' protest from tomorrow: 

1. There is a possibility of lesser cabs being on the road on Monday with the strikers claiming to have support from cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, Noida, Nashik, Pune, Satara, Bangalore and Telangana.

2. Sanjay Naik of Maharahstra Navnirman Vahatuk Sena, the transport wing of MNS, said, “We have got support from various unions of Ola and Uber across the country and in Mumbai alone the effect will be that around 60,000 cabs will be off road.”

3. Lisiting out the drivers' demands, Naik said, "Our demands are simple -- that the government should address our concerns and at least meet us. We have written several letters to the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, transport department, transport minister but none have met us to hear our demands.”

4. The main demands of the unions are that Ola and Uber should ensure business worth Rs 1.25 lakh as assured by them in the beginning, shut operations of company-owned cabs, reinstate blacklisted drivers who have been given low ratings by passengers, decide fares as per cost of vehicles and stop low fare booking.

5. The drivers are also miffed at the state government’s announcement that Ola and Uber cabs should run on CNG.

6. The drivers from Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Gurgaon and other cities will be shutting their devices from 8 AM and protesting outside the offices of Uber and Ola. 

7. In Mumbai, there are more than 45,000 aggregator cabs. Sources said that due to the slump in business, there has been a drop of 20 per cent in number of aggregator cabs on road. 

8. "The banks which provided loans against these cabs have seized thousands of vehicles. The drivers are unable to repay loans and run their families even after driving for over 12 hours," said a driver who operates his vehicle for both Ola and Uber.

9. Naik further alleged that these taxi-hailing companies are giving first priority to company-owned cars rather than driver-owned vehicles, causing a slump in their business.

10. While taxi-hailing companies offered loan-guarantee letters to drivers through the Mudra scheme and that too without any verification, they are defaulting on repayment now as their costs are not covered, Naik claimed.