Online food, grocery delivery platforms buckle up for heavy rush amid G20 Summit

New Delhi, Sep 7

Online food and grocery delivery platforms on Thursday said that are prepared for minimal to no disruption in their services amid the expected heavy demand as a majority of their product categories remain exempted during the G20 Summit weekend which is being organised under a heavy security blanket in Delhi-NCR.

Online grocery company Zepto, which became India’s first unicorn of this year, told IANS that with most people working remotely and movement restrictions in place, "we anticipate a significant surge in demand, with a 30-40 per cent rise in New Delhi and over 10 per cent in other NCR cities compared to normal days".

"To address this surge, we've significantly increased our inventory in New Delhi and other NCR cities and secured necessary approvals for daily replenishable items like dairy and vegetables," a company spokesperson said.

To ensure continuity, rider safety, and seamless delivery, some online food and other essentials delivery platforms have blocked the restricted routes in their navigation systems and relocated some of their riders from high-impact zones to other stores.

"Additionally, control towers have been set up to support riders with on-ground concerns, if any. At Zepto, we are well-prepared to meet the increased demand while maintaining the highest level of service excellence," said the company.

Delhi Lt Governor V. K. Saxena, on Thursday, took the final stock of the security, cleaning, beautification preparedness and other related works in the National Capital and said that Delhi is all decked up and set to welcome the dignitaries and delegates for the G20 Summit.

As part of his inspection, Saxena also visited the state-of-the-art developed Control Room of the Delhi Police set up at its headquarters to keep a hawk's eyes on each nook and cranny of the city. The Delhi Police Commissioner briefed Saxena about the security preparedness and details of the Control Room, where live visuals captured by over 5000 CCTVs installed in different parts of the city will be received.

Zomato said it will be fully operational for its customers in Gurugram, Noida, Faridabad and Ghaziabad, throughout the G20 Summit.

"We will also be operational in all of Delhi, except only for the small part of NDMC area where the G20 Summit is being hosted," said the Deepinder Goyal-run company.