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“This is a very good move. This way, we can work more peacefully without unnecessary pressure,” said a delivery partner from Bengaluru who works for Zomato.
“One of the biggest problems that we workers faced under this model was the likelihood of getting into road accidents in the hurry to deliver. Giving us more time will reduce instances of dangerous driving,” he added.
‘Victory of the strike’
Gig workers’ unions welcomed the news and called it a victory of the national strike that was held on December 25 and Jan 31, 2025.
“It is because of the workers’ collective efforts that those in power have started paying attention to our issues. We will continue our fight against the exploitation, for decent payouts and social security,” said Mohammad Inayat Ali, President, Karnataka App Based Drivers Union.
According to the union, around 40,000 workers took part in the strike in Bengaluru on New Year’s Eve and about 2 lakhs across India. The workers also submitted memorandums to Mr. Mandaviya during the strike demanding the discontinuation of the 10–20-minute delivery model.
Other demands of the workers included minimum fixed per-kilometre rates at ₹ 20 for Zomato, Swiggy, Blinkit, Zepto, Flipkart, and BigBasket workers, workplace safety for women, and elimination of arbitrary ID blocking and punitive rating systems, among others.
Enforcement issues
Experts, however, stressed the importance of a robust enforcement mechanism to ensure that the 10-minute delivery model does not continue.
“It is important to see how the Ministry of Labour defines this issue and the enforcement mechanism it is considering. It is also important to ask about how the government will gather data and evidence on whether the platforms are adhering to the directive,” said Balaji Parthasarathy, professor at IIIT Bangalore and principal investigator of the Fairwork India project.
“If they are able to collect data, and there are violations by the platforms, what are the penalties they will face? What will be the recourse for the worker? These are aspects that need clarification,” he added.
Consumer view
Megha N, a software professional based out of Bengaluru, noted that the quick-delivery model has been a big help to working women, however, added that the safety of the workers is also of paramount importance.
“Women cook on a daily basis in most of the households, so the quick delivery system helps them get ingredients in a short time. For working women, every minute counts in the morning and fast delivery helps them not be dependent on others in the house and stick to a proper plan. That said, we have to be empathetic towards gig workers. Maybe it might help both parties if the delivery time gets extended to 15-20 minutes,” she said.
Another software professional noted that while it might inconvenience the consumers, not every demand of the consumer needs legitimisation, especially on the back of poor working conditions of delivery partners.
Still available
While the platforms have reportedly promised to remove the quick delivery promise from the branding, when The Hindu checked, apps of Blinkit, Swiggy Instamart, Zepto and Big Basket continued to show delivery times between eight and 15 minutes as on late Tuesday evening.
Published – January 13, 2026 11:36 pm IST
