News, 2 July 2025
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways released The Motor Vehicles Aggregator Guidelines, 2025 (MVAG 2025). The MVAG 2025 issued by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, updates the 2020 guidelines to regulate the evolving shared mobility sector in India. These guidelines aim to establish a light-touch regulatory system while prioritizing user safety, security, and driver welfare.
Applicable to all aggregators operating within a State, the guidelines outline a licensing process, requiring applications via a designated portal, payment of fees (e.g., ₹5,00,000 for a new license), and a security deposit based on fleet size. Licenses are valid for five years and are renewable.
Aggregators must be registered companies, LLPs, or cooperative societies, complying with various laws, including data protection and consumer protection acts. Key conditions for aggregators include mandatory induction training (40 hours) for drivers, ensuring ₹5 lakh passenger insurance, not restricting drivers from working with multiple platforms, and appointing a Grievance Officer.
Driver compliances involve valid licenses, bank accounts, medical fitness, police verification, and no convictions for serious offenses in the past three years. Aggregators must provide health insurance (₹5 lakh minimum) and term insurance (₹10 lakh minimum) for drivers. Vehicles must have valid registration, fitness certificates, third-party insurance, and be fitted with GPS tracking and panic buttons. Vehicles older than eight years cannot be onboarded.
The guidelines also mandate app and website compliance, including accessibility in regional languages, cybersecurity certification, live location sharing, and a zero-tolerance policy for drug/alcohol use by drivers. Fare regulation allows aggregators to charge between 50% below and two times the base fare set by the State Government. Provisions for penalties, license suspension, cancellation, and appeals are also detailed. States are empowered to direct aggregators to increase electric vehicle fleets and include Divyangjan-friendly vehicles.
The guidelines offers a much-needed regulatory precision for India’s shared mobility industry. These guidelines officially permit states to authorize the use of private motorcycles for passenger services via aggregator platforms.
Leading industry players, including Uber and Rapido, have embraced this initiative, recognizing its potential to spur innovation, expand affordable mobility options, and generate new employment opportunities.
This policy change is expected to catalyze the creation of numerous flexible livelihood opportunities for riders across both urban and rural India, promote shared and low-emission transport in alignment with India’s climate objectives, and formalize the gig economy through technologically-supported platforms and regulatory backing.
Rapido specifically lauded the operationalization of Clause 23 of the MVAG 2025. This clause allows for the aggregation of non-transport motorcycles for passenger trips, a step Rapido hailed as a “milestone in India’s journey towards a Viksit Bharat”.
