Finally, the ride-sharing platform inDrive has been registered in Nepal. The company has announced that now it will begin its operation officially on Monday, May 06. Along with this, the company will also start charging 10% commissions from its riders.
With this, the popular yet unofficial so far, the California-based ride-sharing company will be a legitimate service. InDrive was launched in Nepal in 2022. However, it hadn’t been registered and drew criticism for the same. This led to traffic police taking action against its riders.
Anyway, the service has been in operation and in popularity for years. But in the absence of its officiality, it always incurred a question mark over its operations in Nepal. That shall subside now after its registration. In 2022, Ms. Pavit Nanda, the company’s Communications Manager for South Asia mentioned the platform’s registration as one of its key objectives. She said, “As a brand, at inDrive our mission is to Challenge injustice to make the world a fairer place for 1 billion+ people. We are excited to announce that inDrive is now officially in Nepal. inDrive gives freedom of choice to people all around the world. Nepal’s market is extremely important for us, and we believe that our services will bring innovation and employment to the Nepali market.”
Sharing a similar sentiment, Ms. Rita Pokhrel, Director of inDrive Nepal, added, “inDrive’s official launch in Nepal marks a new chapter in the ride-hailing industry of Nepal. We are excited to announce that inDrive, is now officially launched in Nepal. We have partnered with IME Pay as our payment partner to provide our users with a seamless and secure payment experience.”
InDrive was registered in Nepal on April 29, 2024, while its official operation began on May 06, 2024.
Check out: The Top 5 Ride-sharing Apps in Nepal
inDrive to charge a 10% commission per ride
With its official birth, inDrive has announced that it will charge a 10% commission from its riders and drivers. So far, the company hasn’t taken a sum from its onboard drivers but now, it’s going to take a small sum per ride.
At the same time, customers can pay their inDrive fare via IME Pay. The company has reached a partnership with the popular digital payment gateway for the same.
InDrive registration could be a blessing in disguise for others!
There’s always been a conflict between ride-sharing riders and other regular public transport service providers over legitimacy. The scuffle has led to frequent physical altercations too. In the absence of clear policy and law, online ride-sharing platforms have been providing service with trepidation to some extent. After Tootle started ride-sharing in 2073, the demand has been rising to let private vehicles provide ride-sharing/hailing service.
There is no federal law that has allowed private vehicles to provide ride-sharing services barring some provinces favoring the industry such as Bagmati which has legalized ride-sharing.
So, after inDrive registration in Nepal, the door has probably opened for legitimacy for private vehicles to offer ride-sharing services.