Indian state’s new tax on digital platforms sets gig workers against firms

Under the new law, a welfare board, with representatives of gig workers’ unions, will decide how the money raised through the tax is to be spent [File: Indranil Mukherjee/AFP]

Gig workers have welcomed a new law in India’s largest state Rajasthan to impose a tax on revenue earned by digital platforms that operate in the state, including global giants Uber and Amazon, even as industry groups have warned it will eventually hurt customers and derail business in the state.

Late at night on Monday, Rajasthan passed a law imposing up to 2 percent tax on revenue earned by digital platforms that operate in the state. The tax would go towards the welfare and social security of an estimated two million platform-based gig workers in the state – a first in the country and coming at a time when national elections are less than a year away.