Uber's new scheme

Uber Technologies Inc. is an American multinational online transportation network company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It develops, markets and operates the Uber mobile app, which allows consumers with smartphones to submit a trip request which is then routed to Uber drivers who use their own cars. As of May 2016, the service was available in over 66 countries and 449 cities worldwide. Since Uber's launch, several other companies have replicated its business model, a trend that has come to be referred to as "Uberification".

Uber was founded as "UberCab" by Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp in 2009 and the app was released the following June. Beginning in 2012, Uber expanded internationally. In 2014, it experimented with carpooling features and made other updates. Klout ranked the San Francisco-based company as the 48th-most powerful company in America in 2014. By late-2015, Uber was estimated to be worth $62.5 billion.

The legality of Uber has been challenged by governments and taxi companies, who allege that its use of drivers who are not licensed to drive taxicabs is unsafe and illegal.
Taxi aggregator Uber has announced the 'Mi Pan Malak' scheme to encourage taxi and auto drivers across the megapolis to join its platform.

Under the scheme, the drivers can avail of offers and services through Uber's partnerships with leading financial institutions and car manufacturers with a down payment of as low as Rs 25,000, Uber said in a statement here.

Presently, 'kaali-peeli' drivers rent taxis for 12-hour shifts paying as high as Rs 600 per shift (excluding CNG), Uber claimed.

With the same amount of money, these drivers can own their vehicles, it said.
This comes at a time when taxi and auto-rickshaw drivers across all major cities, including Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Kochi, have been organizing protests, saying that on-demand taxi aggregators like Uber and Ola are a threat to their livelihoods.

They are also demanding better rules to level the playing field regarding pricing. While cab aggregators operate on-demand based surge pricing, regular taxis have to abide by government-mandated ceilings on the minimum and maximum fares.

"At Uber, we are keen on building micro entrepreneurship by providing flexible economic opportunities for all. Through this special scheme, we wish to encourage existing taxi and auto drivers to become financially independent by reaping the benefits of our platform," said Shailesh Sawlani, general manager, Uber Mumbai.
Uber claims that at least 30% of its existing driver partners in Mumbai are ex-taxi, auto and radio taxi drivers.

In February this year, during the 'Make in India' week hosted by the Centre, Uber signed an agreement with the Maharashtra government's Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Department (SDED) to create 75,000 new economic opportunities, including a focus on training women and people from marginalised societies.

Uber was founded by Garrett Camp, the founder of StumbleUpon, and Travis Kalanick in 2009. The company received $200,000 inseed funding that same year. In 2010, Uber raised $1.25 million in additional funding.

The name "Uber" is apparently a reference to the common (and somewhat slangy) word "uber", meaning "super", and having its origins in the German word über.

Following a beta launch in the summer of 2010, Uber's services and mobile app officially launched in San Francisco in 2011.Initially,Ryan Graves was appointed as CEO, however, Kalanick replaced him in the role later that year. Graves stepped down to become the company's COO.

By the end of 2011, Uber had raised $44.5 million in funding. That year, the company changed its name from UberCab to Uber.