You may soon have a single app for all cab aggregators

India may soon have a single app for all cab aggregators which will be designed and maintained by the government to contain dominant players like Ola and Uber in the segment.

Sources, who did not wish to be identified, said the road transport ministry was considering to create a uniform platform for all cab aggregators giving room to local industry players to pitch themselves along with global cab giants.

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“It (app) will be common to everybody… Why should there be dominance of any one firm,” said the source. “Why just have Ola and Uber…Let everybody come”.

The road transport ministry is of the view that dominance of a few players can have an adverse influence on prices for the consumers, the source said, hinting that the new app shall have prices decided by the government.

“We have to ensure that consumer gets a cheap ride as well as there is sufficient employment… We have to draw up policy to maintain the equilibrium,” the source said.

The government will also not push for early adoption of driverless cars, given the risk of rendering many drivers jobless.

“We cannot bring driverless cars to India,” the source said. “The cab industry provides huge job opportunities…We should not use technology that leaves people unemployed,” the source said.

There are an estimated 5 million drivers in India engaged in the cab industry.