{"id":59068,"date":"2024-06-25T15:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-06-25T09:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/idronline.org\/?post_type=ground_up_stories&p=59068"},"modified":"2026-01-14T23:04:54","modified_gmt":"2026-01-14T17:34:54","slug":"hot-wheels-navigating-delhis-heat-as-a-taxi-driver","status":"publish","type":"ground_up_stories","link":"https:\/\/idronline.org\/kn-in\/ground-up-stories\/hot-wheels-navigating-delhis-heat-as-a-taxi-driver\/","title":{"rendered":"Hot wheels: Navigating Delhi’s heat as a taxi driver"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"a<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>
Even when I don’t have a passenger, I have to switch on the air conditioning because my phone overheats and stops working. | Picture courtesy: India Development Review<\/figcaption><\/figure>

I’ve been working as a taxi driver with a private company in Delhi (NCT) for the past year. I live in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, with my wife and two children, and my day typically starts at 6:30 am and ends at 11 pm. I took a loan to buy a Wagon R that I could drive as a taxi, and most of my daily income goes towards paying off the loan instalments.<\/p>

On an average, I earn INR 1,800 in a day. However, this summer my earnings have reduced significantly—to INR 1,200 a day. Some days, this amount is as little as INR 400.<\/p>

The primary reason for this is the heat, due to which we have to switch on the air conditioning on every ride. Even when I don’t have a passenger, I have to switch on the air conditioning because my phone overheats and stops working. As a result, sometimes I can’t access the taxi app on my phone. This causes delays in starting trips, which annoys the passengers, and also prevents me from getting new trips. I have been placing a towel on the stand behind the phone to protect it from the heat, but this hasn’t been helping much. I only bought this phone last year, and it’s already giving me problems.<\/p>

Due to the constant use of air conditioner, I have to get the CNG gas cylinder refilled almost every day, which costs me INR 700–800 daily. Additionally, in the evening when I get hungry, I end up buying something from the roadside. Even though I take food from home in the morning, I have to eat it within two to three hours or else it gets spoilt.<\/p>

All of these expenses have impacted my daily earnings drastically. In the past few months, I’ve had to borrow money from relatives and friends to pay off my car instalments.<\/p>

 Arjun Singh is a taxi driver in Delhi (NCT).<\/em><\/p>

—<\/p>

Know more: <\/strong>Read this article<\/a> to learn more about how Delhi’s homeless are battling sleeplessness due to extreme heat.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40,"featured_media":59070,"template":"","categories":[1889],"tags":[466,3663,3727],"series":[],"meta-filter":[],"schema-filter":[743],"no-display":[],"class_list":["post-59068","ground_up_stories","type-ground_up_stories","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-climate-emergency","tag-climate-change","tag-loan","tag-urban-planning","contributor-arjun-singh","states-uttar-pradesh","schema-filter-article"],"yoast_head":"\nHot wheels: Navigating Delhi's heat as a taxi driver | IDR<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Rising temperatures are driving up daily expenses for taxi drivers in the capital.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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