Urban Company to support service partners facing domestic violence

Urban Company, a marketplace for on-demand home services, on Tuesday introduced a policy against gender-based violence for its fleet of service professionals.

The policy, Project Nidar, will aid the company’s active service professionals who are facing or have faced domestic violence and abuse, by creating awareness and supporting them during challenging times, Urban Company said in a news release.

The company has joined hands with an NGO supporting survivors of gender-based violence for this initiative.


The company aims to provide counselling, legal assistance, and emergency lodging support to the survivors.

It will also provide medical support — beyond the already existing Rs 1 lakh rupees insurance cover — and a financial aid of up to Rs 50,000 to service partners seeking help.

The policy applies to all active service partners on the UC platform in India.

“Women comprise about 35% of our partner fleet which makes ‘Project Nidar’ even more critical,” Urban Company chief executive Abhiraj Singh Bhal said. It “has been carefully crafted with gender experts to not only provide tangible medical and financial support but also raise awareness about domestic violence and abuse,” he added.

According to research published in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, one in three women in India is likely to have experienced intimate partner violence. Of these victims, only one in ten formally report it to the police or healthcare professionals.