Coronavirus impact: Uber, Ola suspend operations till March 31

Cab aggregators Uber and Ola have suspended their operations till March 31 amid the lockdown announced by the state governments. Both cab companies said that this decision has been taken to reduce the spread of coronavirus after the Delhi government notified on Sunday that the city will be under lockdown from March 23 to 31 and no public transport, including private buses, taxis and auto-rickshaws will be allowed to ply.

"In compliance with the government guidelines, we are temporarily suspending all Uber services in your city. This means that Uber rides services will not be available until further notice. We don't take such measures lightly, and we ask that you please follow the instructions of the public health authorities," said Uber in a statement.

An Ola spokesperson said the company "will enable a minimal network of vehicles to support essential services in cities, wherever applicable, as part of this national effort to reduce the contagion of COVID-19".

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Both the companies had already temporarily suspended their shared rides to reduce spread of coronavirus.

The Centre and state governments on Sunday decided to lock down 75 districts across the country where coronavirus cases have been detected. The governments decided that in order to cut the spread, restriction on the movement of non-essential passenger transport was urgently needed.

Many districts in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala have been locked down. Delhi will be under lockdown from 6 am on March 23 till midnight on March 31.

The city's borders will remain sealed during the lockdown, but essential services related to health, food, water and power supply will continue, and 25 per cent of the DTC buses will run to transport people associated with essential services. Noida Metro has also announced that it will suspend operations, while Delhi Metro is expected to come up with the announcement soon.

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