MUMBAI, June 18 -- The state government has begun accepting applications for its new aggregator taxi service, 'Devabhau Sahakar Taxi', meant to counter the hefty commissions charged by private ride-hailing companies such as Uber, Ola and Rapido. The new platform, boldly branded with the political moniker 'Deva Bhau' used for chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, will be run by the Devdutt Cooperative Society, launched for the welfare of educated unemployed youth in the state, said officials in the state transport department. Under the new scheme, profits will go directly to drivers and vehicle owners. The service has been modelled on the Bharat Taxi initiative operating in cities like Delhi and Kolkata. The first phase is expected to include 2,000 to 5,000 vehicles operating across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, including Mumbai. The Devdutt Cooperative Society has tied up with Mumbai District Central Cooperative Bank Ltd, popularly called 'Mumbai Bank', to provide loans at 10% interest to purchase taxis, said a senior transport department officials. The inclusion of Mumbai Bank has drawn sharp criticism, as the bank's chairperson is BJP MLC Pravin Darekar, who launched the new app on Monday. Social activist Anjali Damani posted on X, saying, ".Is Mumbai Bank a private bank of the BJP? Ordinary citizens, farmers, small entrepreneurs wait at the bank's thresholds for loans; but the bank's doors are opened so easily for schemes with political (BJP) branding?" Damania added, "Using depositors' money to set up a business with a political name is absolutely unacceptable. Cancel this name immediately. Mumbai Bank belongs to the people, not a private treasury of any leader or the BJP." Darekar met taxi unions and prospective applicants at the Mumbai Bank headquarters in Fort on Tuesday. While providing information about the initiative, he also explained the loan schemes that will be made available to drivers....