Guwahati, September 2: App-based cab and bike-taxi services remained completely off the roads across Guwahati on Tuesday as thousands of drivers continued their indefinite strike for the second consecutive day, plunging the city’s daily commute into chaos and forcing office-goers, students and other regular users to scramble for alternative transport.
Drivers associated with Ola, Uber and Rapido — operating both four-wheelers and three-wheelers, including electric autos and bike taxis — have withdrawn services entirely since Monday morning. The agitation, spearheaded by the Guwahati Online Cab Driver Community and several other drivers’ organisations, shows no sign of ending soon. Organisations have made it clear that the strike will continue until their core demands are met and have set no withdrawal deadline.
The primary grievance centres on the widening gap between operating costs and earnings. Drivers say fares have remained largely stagnant for years even as petrol, diesel and vehicle maintenance costs have risen sharply. Many claim their effective earnings have fallen significantly over the past seven to eight years. While they once received closer to ₹25 per kilometre, current rates often leave them with only ₹9–12 per kilometre after platform commissions and expenses, making it increasingly difficult to sustain their livelihoods.
“We cannot run our vehicles at such low rates. Both the government and the online cab companies need to take responsibility,” one protester said. Organisations estimate that 15,000 to 20,000 people associated with the sector in the city depend on these earnings to support their families.
The drivers are demanding a minimum fare of ₹25 per kilometre for smaller vehicles and hatchbacks, and ₹30 per kilometre for larger vehicles and sedans (with some organisations citing a higher figure of ₹50 for bigger cars). They also want the state government to step in and formally determine the base fare, per-kilometre charge and per-minute rate rather than leaving these largely to the discretion of the app companies. Additional demands include mandatory cancellation and waiting charges, a dedicated office for app-based transport services in Guwahati, and a helpline for drivers facing complaints or emergencies.
Representatives of the protesting groups said they had repeatedly raised these issues with the state transport department, local administration and the cab companies over the past several years without receiving a satisfactory resolution. The current indefinite strike follows earlier warnings and a series of representations that failed to yield concrete results.
The impact on the city’s mobility has been immediate and widespread. Commuters who rely heavily on app-based services for door-to-door travel have been left stranded or forced to depend on overcrowded city buses and conventional petrol-run auto-rickshaws. Public buses have been packed beyond capacity during peak hours, while some passengers report that auto-rickshaw fares have risen amid the sudden surge in demand. College students, office employees and those travelling to the airport or railway station have been among the worst affected.
“The continued strike has caused inconvenience to a large number of Guwahati residents, particularly those who regularly depend on app-based transport for their daily travel,” noted reports from the ground. Many residents said they had to leave home much earlier than usual or cancel non-essential trips altogether.
The agitation has brought together both three-wheeler and four-wheeler operators, reflecting a broad consensus among platform workers that the existing fare structure is no longer viable. Driver organisations have appealed to passengers and the public for understanding, arguing that the protest is aimed at securing sustainable livelihoods rather than causing deliberate hardship.
As of Tuesday evening, there was no official indication of immediate talks or a breakthrough. The state government and the cab aggregator companies had not issued detailed public responses to the ongoing disruption by the time of filing this report. With the strike declared indefinite and fuel prices remaining elevated, Guwahati’s dependence on app-based mobility looks set to face prolonged strain unless a negotiated settlement is reached soon.
For a city that has grown increasingly reliant on Ola, Uber and Rapido for everyday transport, the second day of the shutdown has underlined both the critical role these services play and the deep discontent simmering among the drivers who keep them running.
