CM Yogi Adityanath Launches Bharat Taxi, Farmer Scheme; Drivers Get Zero Commission & ₹5 Lakh Cover

Lucknow, September 23: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday launched Bharat Taxi and Mukhyamantri Krishak Samriddhi Yojana, taking two major steps for taxi drivers and farmers. Through Bharat Taxi, taxi, two-wheeler, and three-wheeler drivers can join with zero commission upon registration. They will also receive social security of Rs. 5 lakh.

Meanwhile, under Mukhyamantri Krishak Samriddhi Yojana, the interest rate on loans provided to farmers through LDB has been reduced from 11% to 06%.

Chief Minister stated, "The success of cooperation depends on whose hands are at its helm. Good leadership turns cooperation into a means of prosperity, while wrong leadership can lead it towards anarchy. For the first time after Independence, a separate Ministry of Cooperation was created in the country, and now its results are becoming visible."

Chief Minister said, "No one had thought about taxi, two-wheeler and three-wheeler drivers earlier. Now, upon registration, they will become part of Bharat Taxi on zero commission and will receive social security of Rs. 5 lakh. With social security, a driver can carry out his Work responsibly and without worry. When a person gets Bharat Taxi written on his vehicle, he will feel a sense of pride. Bharat Taxi is not merely a taxi that transports passengers. It is the taxi of entire India, which will work to transform India's speed into progress."

He further added that its operations have started in Lucknow, Gorakhpur, Varanasi and Prayagraj. MOUs have also been signed with various institutions, including Lucknow Airport, Lucknow Metro and Lucknow Police.

CM Yogi stated, "Before 2017, when people traveled in taxis or three-wheelers, they would not pay the fare. They would find that goons associated with the ruling party had boarded the taxi. They would beat up the taxi driver, throw him away, and disappear with the taxi. They would scrap all the stolen vehicles in Meerut and change their chassis. Before 2017, forget about two-wheelers, three-wheelers and four-wheelers; if someone was traveling in a buffalo cart and got down for a while to have tea or go to the urinal, on returning he would find that the buffalo had disappeared and only the wooden carriage remained."

He added that if a taxi was parked somewhere, it would be found that even the tires had disappeared. This was the actual situation in Uttar Pradesh. The condition of the roads was such that one could not even tell whether there was a pothole in the road or the road was in the pothole.

Referring to Prayagraj Mahakumbh 2025, CM stated, "There, lakhs of young people were safely taking devotees to Sangam on their bikes through Rapido. They also helped transport people from Sangam to the railway station and airport. This did not disrupt traffic, and people got convenient access to transportation."

He directed Transport Minister Dayashankar Singh to also take forward the rural bus service on the lines of Bharat Taxi, as this would create new employment opportunities for lakhs of young people.

CM Yogi informed, "Today, Uttar Pradesh has better connectivity. Uttar Pradesh's share in expressways in the country is more than 60%. Inter-state connectivity is linked through four-lane roads. Four-lane roads connect district headquarters. Roads in villages have been improved. This transformation also improves travel and keeps taxi drivers, three-wheeler drivers, and two-wheeler drivers safe. Every person progresses in such an environment. There are no curfews now, and there are no riots. No one can steal now, because 14 lakh CCTV cameras have been installed in the state. If a theft takes place somewhere, there is a system in place to take action against the person committing the theft at the next intersection."

Launching Mukhyamantri Krishak Samriddhi Yojana, CM Yogi stated, "Farmers used to get loans from the Uttar Pradesh Cooperative Gramya Vikas Bank at an interest rate of 11%. This has now been reduced to 06%. To ensure that farmers do not face a shortage of funds for farming and machinery, arrangements have been made for long-term loans. In the coming years, the target is to provide its benefits to 5 lakh small and marginal farmers. If the Annadata farmer is prosperous, India will be prosperous. If the Annadata farmer is prosperous, India will prosper. The stronger the cooperative sector becomes, the stronger the country will become."

Chief Minister stated, "After the government was formed in 2017, loans worth more than Rs. 36,000 crore of 86 lakh small and marginal farmers were waived. The government completed irrigation projects that had remained pending for decades. The Saryu Canal National Project took nearly 50 years to be completed. Arjun Sahayak, Bansagar and Middle Ganga projects were also taken forward. Over the past around nine and a half years, an additional irrigation facility has been extended to 24 lakh hectares of land in the state. More than 16 lakh farmers with private tubewells are being provided free electricity. Irrigation through canals and government tubewells is also free."

CM Yogi said, "There are currently 122 sugar mills operational in the state. More than 100 of these mills are making sugarcane payments on the fourth day. Over the past 9 years, sugarcane payments amounting to Rs 3.30 lakh crore have been made to farmers."

He alleged that previous governments had shut down 29 sugar mills, of which 21 were sold at throwaway prices.

He stated, "Work has been undertaken to provide facilities to farmers from seeds to markets. Pack houses have been established, food processing units have been set up, and technical support has been provided through Krishi Vigyan Kendras along with the formation of FPOs. Through cooperation, warehouses with a capacity of 50,000 metric tonnes are also being developed at different locations across the state."

Chief Minister informed, "Before 2017, 16 cooperative banks in the state had become inactive, and their licenses had been seized. Thousands of crores of rupees belonging to farmers were deposited in these banks. Now, 15 of these 16 banks have returned to profit. Work is also underway to improve the remaining bank."

He informed, "PACS had earlier been provided an interest-free cash credit facility of up to Rs. 10 lakh, which has now been increased to Rs. 15 lakh. As many as 54 lakh new members have joined the cooperative sector. Digital systems are also being strengthened to ensure that farmers receive fertilizers, pesticides and other facilities on time."

At the program, CM Yogi Adityanath launched the e-portal of Mukhyamantri Krishak Samriddhi Yojana, the Urvarak Setu mobile app of the Cooperation Department and the UPCDC mobile app of the Uttar Pradesh Cooperative Database Center by pressing a button.

The CM handed over share certificates of Bharat Taxi to 5 Saarathis and loan sanction letters to five beneficiaries of Mukhyamantri Krishak Samriddhi Yojana. Bharat Taxi CEO Colonel Himanshu and Adani Airport Lucknow Chief Commercial Officer Shiv Mohan exchanged the MOUs signed with various institutions. Thereafter, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Union Minister of State for Cooperation and Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol and other dignitaries flagged off Bharat Taxi.

On the occasion, Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak, Agriculture Minister Surya Pratap Shahi, Minister of State for Cooperation (Independent Charge) JPS Rathore, Minister of State for Transport (Independent Charge) Dayashankar Singh, Chairman of Uttar Pradesh Cooperative Gram Vikas Bank Dr Vivek Kumar Singh Tomar, Additional Secretary, Union Ministry of Cooperation Pankaj Kumar Bansal, Vice President of Bharat Taxi Rohit Gupta, along with public representatives and officials, were present.

Published on: Wednesday, September 23, 2026, 08:11 PM IST