The lure of a monthly income of Rs 80,000, several times more than what an owner-driver would earn from a metered yellow taxi, is fuelling the growth of the Uber and Ola fleet in Calcutta.
Uber has put up ads on the back of buses and autorickshaws, telling owner-drivers with luxury taxi permits how much they can earn by joining the fleet. The ad also mentions perks like the freedom of choosing one's work hours and hassle-free payment.
The company pays 80 per cent of the fare charged for a ride to the driver, keeping the remaining 20 per cent as its service fee. "We also have an incentive scheme per trip," said Ashwin Dais, general manager of Uber, Calcutta.
According to drivers, the incentive till recently was Rs 200 per trip but it is often higher. A driver said he earned an incentive of Rs 400 per trip last Holi.
But how do the earnings add up to Rs 80,000 a month?
"An owner-driver who does 10 to 12 hours a day, six-days-a-week, can make this amount quite easily. Some rental companies with two drivers for a car make even more than that with Uber," Ashwin said.
The company says it doesn't let a driver be "online" for more than 14 hours a day at a stretch to ensure safety.
Several Uber and Ola drivers said they had been taking home around Rs 50,000 a month after paying their EMI of around Rs 15,000. Avtar Singh, an owner-driver with Uber, said he had been making between Rs 30,000 and Rs 35,000 a month after paying the EMI for his 20-month-old Swift Dzire. His vehicle used to be part of the car pool at an IT company before Uber launched in Calcutta last September.
"My friend, who runs a travel business, told me about Uber and I joined them. I am online for 14 to 15 hours daily. I get up at three in the morning and go online at 4am. I do the airport and station drops early in the morning. By that time, the office rush starts. The best thing about Uber is that I don't have to waste fuel looking for customers. The customers find me," said Avtar, who had migrated to the city from Punjab in 1992.
Another facet of the app-cab business that Avtar likes is that his earnings are credited to his bank account without him having to haggle with passengers or chase anyone for pending payments.
According to owner-drivers of metered taxis, an income of more than Rs 20,000 a month is rare after subtracting the EMI and other expenditure.
Ola, Uber's biggest competitor across the country, too has an 80-20 fare-share model and promises an income of Rs 80,000 to Rs 90,000 a month. "What a driver partner earns on the Ola platform is direct functionality of the number of bookings he does, and the high quality of rides he offers to his passengers. It is quite possible to earn anything between Rs 75,000 and Rs 90,000 by logging in for 12 to 14 hours a day," said Anand Subramanian, senior director (marketing communications), Ola.
While Ola, like Uber, keeps 20 per cent as its service fee, it offers incentives that are goal-driven. "Drivers have to do maximum log-ins and trips to get those incentives," Anand said.
Working for app-based operators makes financial sense even for drivers who do not own cars.
Muzaffar Ali, in his 50s and driving in the city for three decades, said he makes Rs 14,000 to Rs 15,000 a month. Sometimes, the amount increases to Rs 18,000, depending on the number of hours he puts in.
He has been with Uber for two months after quitting his previous job as a driver with a travel company in central Calcutta, where a 10-hour day would fetch him Rs 7,000 a month. "Convenience is the key. I wasn't feeling well today, so I haven't been on the road. I can make up for this by putting in more hours on other days," Muzaffar said.
