Ola offers free rides on trials in Aussie city
Bengaluru: Indian ride-sharing major Ola on Wednesday said it began offering two free rides in Australia's Perth city as a soft launch of its service with local partners.
"Customers in Perth can download our app, register for our account and book their rides. The first two rides up to $10 value are free as part of our trial service," the city-based online cab aggregator said in a statement here.
The company on January 30 announced driving into Australia to foray into the international market to rival its US-based Uber. It also started hiring private vehicles and drivers in Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth over a fortnight.
The company has sought feedback from customers and driver-partners on their experience and tips to improve the service.
Private-hire vehicle owners in Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth can register with the company at drive.olacabs.com.
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Lalu Prasad slams BJP over heckling of woman singer
Chaos over "Raghupati Raghav..." at Vajpayee memorial
Patna, Dec 26: RJD president Lalu Prasad on Thursday slammed the BJP over alleged heckling of a woman artist who sang a bhajan, known to be a favourite of Mahatma Gandhi, at a function organised on the birth anniversary of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee a day ago.
The RJD supremo, on his X handle, alleged that the BJP leaders had taken exception to the phrase 'Sita Ram' and asked the singer to apologise before erupting in roars of "Jai Shri Ram".
The well-attended function was held on Wednesday at Bapu Sabhagar, a sprawling state-of-the-art auditorium in the heart of the city.
The septuagenarian alleged that the incident was "reflective of the misogyny that the BJP and the Sangh Parivar was known for" and its "disdain for females was resulting in disrespect for 'Sita Mata'."
However, BJP sources, who did not wish to be named, pointed out that the newspaper report shared by Prasad in an earlier tweet clearly stated that the furore was not over 'Sita Ram', but the subsequent stanza - 'Ishwar Allah Tero Naam'.
The sources claimed that party workers were opposed to the "recital of a line that was not part of the original verse composed by 15th-century poet Narsi Mehta, but inserted later, apparently in line with Gandhi's Hindu-Muslim unity plank".
संघियों और भाजपाइयों को “जय सियाराम, जय सीताराम” के नाम एवं नारे से शुरू ही नफरत है क्योंकि उसमें माता सीता का जयकारा है। ये लोग शुरू से ही महिला विरोधी है तथा “जय श्री राम’ के नारे के साथ आधी आबादी महिलाओं का भी अपमान करते हैं।
— Lalu Prasad Yadav (@laluprasadrjd) December 26, 2024
गायिका देवी ने कल कार्यक्रम में बापू के नाम पर… pic.twitter.com/fOGhxfWE16
