Food firm's green push takes delivery partners for a ride

Ahna Prakash | NT

Bengaluru

Food delivery companies like Zomato claim that their delivery partners using bicycles to deliver packages is helping the company to reduce its carbon footprint. Zomato has also clarified that the delivery partners have to travel only short distances on bicycles. However, the reality is completely opposite.

Shyam (name changed on request) says that he pedals 25 kilometres every day.

“I don’t have a scooter or bike so I have to use a cycle to deliver. Sometimes it is very tiring when I have to travel long distances. Every day is different, but on an average, I travel approximately more than 20 km every day,” he said.

Another Swiggy delivery partner, Arvind who recently had met with an accident while delivering food for Swiggy, said that “Even if we fall sick by getting wet in the rain or get a heatstroke, we do not receive any help. I recently got in an accident in April, but when I contacted Swiggy for monetary help, I didn’t hear back from them.”

As per the Zomato Environment, Social and Governance update, 18 per cent of Zomato’s total order was delivered on bicycles. The company started bicycle deliveries in 2019, with 5,000 riders in 12 cities across India. Zomato has also claimed that this step was taken to increase sustainability and reduce carbon emissions in the air.

Ashok Agarwal, Supreme Court lawyer and labour law expert says that this is a violation of human rights. “It is totally unacceptable. Besides violation of human rights of such employees, it also violates Article 21 (right to live with dignity, right to health, right against exploitation). It is an exploitative practice that needs to be stopped immediately,” said Ashok.

He also added that such practices are inhuman and against public interest and opposed to public policy.

“When they are not appropriately compensated for their hard labour, it is tantamount to violation of article 23 of the constitution (Prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labour),” he said.