The instant delivery apps in the country have always raked a debate on the internet as a section of people laud the idea and implementation whereas another section rule it out as a sheer exploitation of delivery partners. In one such instance, a techie’s tweet comparing Bengaluru’s instant delivery ecosystem to the USA’s San Francisco has gone viral on social media.
“In San Francisco, I’ve stopped using DoorDash because I’m paying $25 to wait 55mins to get a bang average cold sandwich. In Bangalore, I just ordered the most mind-blowingly mouthwatering hot biryanis from Meghana’s for $5 and it arrived in EIGHT MINUTES!(Sic),” Debargya Das tweeted.
Das’s tweet, however, had not gone down well with Twitter users with many calling him out for glorifying labour exploitation. A Twitter user wrote, “Yes because in India these platforms are able to exploit extremely poor and vulnerable folks for whom this is a low entry barrier job. The workers bear the risks and costs of the speeding up(Sic)”
Another user wrote, “I see so many comparing US costs to India’s. I don’t think this is a fair comparison considering the lower cost of living and lower cost of blue collar labor in India.(Sic)”
However, Das defended his argument. “The ‘extremely poor and vulnerable folks’ you’re talking about work at-will and their alternative is unemployment. It’s a living wage that sustains them. If the government believed it was exploitation, they’d set minimum wage laws. And they don’t.(Sic)”
