Trisha Thadani

USA TODAY

MUMBAI, India — In this bustling metropolis with a gaping disparity between the rich and poor, Uber provides more than convenient transportation at the touch of a button.

For Rajendra Jadhav, 32, driving for Uber gives him the opportunity for social mobility among the city’s rigid class barriers.

Jadhav, who lives in a slum in a suburb of Mumbai, said he works about 15 hours a day and makes the equivalent of $896 a month.

A steady income means Jadhav can afford to send his three children to school and perhaps one day move his five-person family out of the slums and into an apartment.

“I would always like to make more, but for now, this will do,” he said.

Jadhav is among the 250,000 Uber drivers across 26 cities in India, the third largest market for Uber behind the United States and China.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently called Uber the type of start-up he wants to see thrive in his country — one that takes a risk, solves a problem, increases quality of life and ultimately generates a profit.

“Uber has become a symbol of wealth and prosperity,” Modi said, while launching a campaign for Indian start-ups.

When Uber was introduced in Mumbai in 2014, the city was the company's fastest growing market in Asia, said Shailesh Sawlani, general manager of Uber Mumbai. At first, the average wait time was 25 minutes for a car — now it is 5.

A typical Uber driver here makes about $746 to $1,343 a month — considered a comfortable middle-class salary and about what an entry-level business analyst makes in India.

Sawlani said Uber also offers drivers flexibility and the empowerment of being their own boss, but the amount a driver makes depends on how much time is spent on the road.

Driver Bhim Sen, 20, said he earns about $32 a day, but some days as little as $22.

"I would like more money, but there's only so much you can do," said Sen, who was a private driver before joining Uber. “As long as I’m online, I’ll earn. But if I'm offline to eat or take a break, I am automatically losing money."

Although other private driving firms offer similar incomes, Sen and several other Uber drivers said they switched to the ride-sharing service because of delayed payments and disorganization.

"Before I would put in the time, but not get the equivalent money for the amount of work I did," Sen said from behind the wheel of his car. "With Uber, I put in the same amount of time, and I get the money."

Driver Manohar Gulabrao Jadhav, 38, said he makes about $300 a month with Uber — more than he used to make as a truck driver.

Uber India secures investment from major Indian company

The San Francisco-based Uber plans to invest $1 billion in its Indian market and to increase daily ridership to 1 million from 200,000 this year.

While Uber India is a welcome opportunity and service for some, it also brings along some controversy.

A rape case by a New Delhi driver in 2014 prompted banning the service for several months in India's capital. The ban has since been lifted, and drivers now undergo intensified background checks.

Uber's presence also upset local taxi firms, prompting protests, petitions and legislative proposals, as has happened in other cities around the world.

Uber India has experienced steady growth since it launched in the country in 2013 and has a 40% market share, but it is still not the market leader. The biggest competitor is India-based Ola, which claims it provides nearly four times as many rides per day as Uber.

Mazher Ramzanali, 36, who works in the entertainment business in Mumbai and frequently uses Uber, said he has not seen any other service that offers such opportunity.

Uber drivers "don’t need an education, they just need to be polite and be able to work hard,” he said. “If you told me two years ago that there was an app that could help a driver ... run a business based on hard work — that’s unbelievable.”

Follow USA TODAY reporter Trisha Thadani on Twitter: @TrishaThadani

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