Uber ties up with Maruti; to create 1 mn jobs by 2018

Uber is leaving no stones unturned to beat Ola in the highly competitive ride-hailing industry. The US taxi services major, in a new initiative, has tied up with Maruti Suzuki India Ltd and National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) to create 1 million jobs by 2018.

The programme, UberShaan, will teach driving to unskilled people. It will also help trained drivers receive commercial licences and provide them vehicle financing and leasing solutions, PTI reported, citing Uber India President Amit Jain said.

Uber Technologies Inc. launched its India operations in 2013, becoming the biggest competitor for India's Ola. Uber has over 4 lakh drivers in India. RS Kalsi, executive director (marketing and sales) at Maruti Suzuki, said they expect to train 30,000 drivers under the UberShaan programme.

Uber and Maruti will jointly conduct a four-month pilot training programme in Delhi, Chennai and Hyderabad for drivers. The programme, based on the pilot project, will eventually expand to other cities across the country. The project will also help drivers get training through NSDC training centres across India.

Arch rival Ola hasn't been far from such initiatives. It has also launched programmes to empower its drivers with initiatives like OlaPragati and PinkCabs. In a recent move, Ola had tied up with automaker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd to boost its market share.

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