Uber has announced the launch of Uber Essential to facilitate ride-hailing services for Mumbai residents for medical emergencies and hospital visits.

The ride hailing company has partnered with the city’s traffic police and has identified a select fleet of vehicles for pick-up and drop to or from city hospitals. "All drivers have been issued curfew passes by local law enforcement authorities to ensure seamless movement to medical facilities." The service will be extended to additional cities across India soon.

"In conformity with government guidelines, we urge people to stay safe and discourage non-essential travel. Through Uber Essential, we are selectively offering rides for essential services to cater to crucial medical travel requirements in Mumbai. Amidst the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, we are leveraging our technology and network of driver-partners to enable citizens to access essential medical services, while simultaneously also helping authorities contain the spread of COVID-19," said Prabhjeet Singh, director (Operations) and Head of Cities, Uber India & South Asia.

All riders on Uber Essential are mandated to carry relevant documentation to validate their purpose of travel to authorities. The Uber app has now been designed to facilitate urgent travel needs to hospitals only, the company said.

This comes as Maharashtra extended the lockdown to prevent the coronavirus from spreading till April 30, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray announced on Saturday.