On Technology Day, Ola and Uber drivers tell us how tech has changed their lives

On National Technology Day, PM Narendra Modi, an avid tech user himself, had taken to Twitter to remind everyone the significance of technology in our lives.

Technology has helped us as a nation, and also as individuals, to grow in various spheres of life. Over the years, a lot has changed about how we go about our day-to-day lives, be it ordering a meal, booking tickets, renting an apartment or even booking a cab. Celebrating National Technology Day, we spoke to drivers working for leading taxi aggregators on how technology has changed their lives.

Pramod Jagannath, an Uber driver from Pune, calls it a boon. He joined Uber around two years ago and there has been no looking back since then, he tells us. He was contemplating buying his own transport vehicle when he got to know about Uber. He enrolled and bought a car on loan. Today, Dhere owns three transport vehicles, and all are enrolled with Uber.

Christy Thompson, an Ola driver from Bengaluru has a similar story to share. Interestingly, he tells us how Ola (Money) has  encouraged him to open a bank account. “I never had a bank account, this way I never put any money in the bank. Automatically, there is money being put into my bank and I have a small amount of savings. None of the auto guys do these things. So it is a better plan that every auto driver must have some kind of savings,” he explains.

Besides, Ola Money has helped in many ways, he adds. “Sometimes we run out of cash, at that time, we can swipe the card to buy gas,” Thompson adds.

He also tells us how technology has simplified navigation. “I can say that Ola is every month working on this kind of a technology because the previous apps which we were using, some other version, was a little bit difficult. But they came up with a different version and it was very helpful for us,” he further explains.

Pramod also tells us how Paytm has put an end to hassles related to dealing with change. “Sometimes, the taxi fare is very small and the customer gives a Rs 1,000 note. With Paytm, the money is automatically debited from the customer’s account. It is automatically credited in my account every week. It can’t get simpler than this,” he explains.

A S Pavan Kumar, an Ola driver from Hyderabad tells us how he has been able to make more money and also how technologies such as Maps has made it convenient to route through lanes and make navigation easy. “No I didn’t find it difficult to get a hang of Maps or the app. Now I can easily reach the customer’s doorsteps,” Kumar adds.

Thompson makes about 10-15 rides per day and says the number depends on how you start the day. “If I can start in the morning by 8 AM and end up by 10 PM, then I make my complete wages. But apart from the peak hours, we can say we get bookings at around half an hour. For any queries, we can always call up the call centre executive,” he explains.

While Uber and Ola may be bickering over numbers, it seems like a win-win for its drivers and customers. If you have a story to share on how technology has changed your lives, do let us know in the comments section below.