Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, launched Bharat Taxi and the Mukhyamantri Krishak Samriddhi Yojana, taking two major steps for taxi drivers and farmers. Through ‘Bharat Taxi,’ two-wheeler, taxi, and three-wheeler drivers will be able to join with zero commission upon registration. They will also receive social security coverage of Rs. 5 lakh. Meanwhile, under the Mukhyamantri Krishak Samriddhi Yojana, the interest rate on loans provided to farmers through the Uttar Pradesh Cooperative Gramya Vikas Bank has been reduced from 11% to 6%.
CM 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 ₹5 lakh. With social security, a driver will be able to carry out his work responsibly and without worry.”
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.
Referring to Prayagraj Mahakumbh 2025, CM noted, “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.”
Credits: UP govt
He directed Transport Minister Dayashankar Singh to also take forward the rural bus service on the lines of Bharat Taxi. He stated, “If this model is taken forward, new employment opportunities will be created for lakhs of young people.”
Launching Mukhyamantri Krishak Samriddhi Yojana, the CM said, “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 five lakh small and marginal farmers.”
Chief Minister emphasized, “If the annadata Kisan is prosperous, India will be prosperous. If the annadata Kisan is prosperous, India will prosper. The stronger the cooperative sector becomes, the stronger the country will become.”
Mr. Yogi said that after the government was formed in 2017, loans worth more than ₹36,000 crore for 86 lakh small and marginal farmers were waived. Irrigation projects that had remained pending for decades were completed. The Saryu Canal National Project took nearly 50 years to be completed. Arjun Sahayak, Bansagar and Middle Ganga projects were also taken forward.
He noted that 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 stated that 122 sugar mills are currently operational in the state. More than 100 of these mills are making sugarcane payments on the fourth day. Over the past nine years, sugarcane payments amounting to ₹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 that 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.
CM said that before 2017, 16 cooperative banks in the state became inactive and their licenses were 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 said PACS were earlier provided an interest-free cash credit facility of up to ₹10 lakh, which has now been increased to ₹15 lakh. As many as 54 lakh new members have joined the cooperative sector. Digital systems are also being strengthened to ensure farmers receive fertilizers, pesticides, and other facilities on time.
At the program, CM Yogi Adityanath launched the Mukhyamantri Krishak Samriddhi Portal app, UPCDC, by pressing a button. A mobile app for fertilizers and the Cooperative Data Center and a mobile app for easy access to cooperative services were also launched. CM handed over share certificates of Bharat Taxi to five 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.
Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak, Minister for Agriculture, Agricultural Education and Agricultural Research 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, Ministry of Cooperation Pankaj Kumar Bansal and Vice President of Bharat Taxi Rohit Gupta were present at the programme.
Published – September 23, 2026 03:09 pm IST
