In yet another first for an Indian taxi company, Bengaluru based taxi aggregator Ola has announced incentives upto Rs 1 lakh for drivers if they convert their taxis into CNG vehicle.
This new scheme was launched under ‘Ola Green Pragati Week’, which is being conducted between August 26th and September 1. Under this special campaign, thousands of drivers, owners of commercial vehicles, car manufacturers and finance companies have come together to offer best possible assistance for mass adaption of CNG vehicles.
The highlight of ‘Ola Green Pragati Week’ is the unique offer for drivers wherein they can get benefits upto Rs 1,00,000, which includes a flat discount of Rs 60,000 in association with partners such as Maruti, Hyundai, and Tata Motors.
There is another scheme to exchange old taxis with new one, sweetened with less interest rates and discounts. Diesel cab owners can get relief from EMIs for two months as well, along with zero commission and some heavy discounts on new CNG vehicles.
Besides advocating for ‘Green Delhi’, this campaign by Ola is also a direct compliance of a Supreme Court order in 2001, which stated that no commercial vehicle can ply in Delhi unless they have been converted into single fuel mode of CNG (compressed natural gas). In July 29th, Delhi High Court had scolded Uber and Ola as the bench said that the court cannot remain a ‘bystander’ while online taxi companies ‘pollute the city’.
Deep Singh, business head (North) at Ola, said, “We are committed to CNG adoption in Delhi. The intention behind this scheme is to create an opportunity for all those drivers who are planning to buy new cars or willing to exchange their old cars for a CNG vehicle, and contribute to a clean and green Delhi.”
As of now, there are 25,000 cabs in Delhi which are registered with Ola (although several of them are registered with Uber and Meru as well). Ola claims that they have 15,000 vehicles on CNG, and around 3000 of them have been added in the last 7 days.
On the other hand, Uber has 10,000 cabs registered in Delhi, but have refused to share details related with CNG only cabs.
In the coming days we may observe lot of ‘Green offers’ from cab companies, sprouting up in Delhi, as Ola and Uber are still, legally banned in the capital city; and they are trying everything possible to get their licenses to run without any risks.
Going Green is certainly one of the initial steps.
