Labour Ministry Open To Probing BluSmart Collapse As Drivers Suffer

The Labour Ministry has taken cognisance of the collapse of the EV cab hailing platform BluSmart and might look into the impact on its drivers, according to sources.

The ministry is currently not in receipt of any formal plea from any association or driver, though it is open to looking at possible measures to support drivers that are out of jobs, the people quoted above said on the condition of anonymity.

Until its recent suspension on April 16, BluSmart had over 10,000 active driver partners that drove its roughly 8,000-strong fleet.

NDTV Profit visited the BluSmart charging hub in Sarjapur, Bengaluru, to find over 200 cabs sitting idle at the premises. The drivers have been told to stop accepting rides for three to four days due to an "audit".

“Due to vehicle audits, operations will be temporarily halted for the next few days starting tomorrow,” according to an email received by a taxi driver.

“As soon as the audit is completed and operations resume, you will be called back immediately. You will receive a message for slot booking," it said.

BluSmart, which has ties to Gensol Engineering Ltd.'s fund-diverting Jaggi brothers, is not able to service customers across its three cities of operations. Cab rides across Mumbai, Delhi NCR and Bengaluru are unavailable on BluSmart's app, with no time slots until May 7.