India pushes quick-commerce firms to drop 10-minute delivery

The India Ministry of Labor and Employment is pushing quick-commerce firms to prioritize the wellness and safety of gig workers. Quick-commerce is a retail model focused on the rapid delivery of groceries and goods. According to a report by Bloomberg, Mansukh Mandaviya, the Minister of Labor and Employment, reportedly met with executives from Blinkit, Swiggy, and Zepto to request that they drop marketing language promising 10-minute deliveries. The meeting was held to discuss ways to improve safety and working conditions for delivery personnel. Following this regulatory push, Blinkit, a quick-commerce firm owned by Zomato, has reportedly removed messaging promising 10-minute deliveries, and its rivals are expected to follow.

This pressure from the ministry follows protests by gig workers. On New Year’s Eve, more than 200,000 gig workers staged protests across major Indian cities, according to a report by the South China Morning Post, which cited the Indian Federation of App Based Transport Workers. The protests highlighted the operational strain on delivery personnel who transport goods from dark stores—small, localized warehouses used for quick-commerce fulfillment. Safety concerns have emerged around workers rushing through traffic to meet delivery deadlines. Prabir Jha, the founder and CEO of the HR consultancy Prabir Jha People Advisory, noted that “Ultra-fast delivery models of 10-15 minutes materially change the risk and stress profile of gig work,” as expectations for deliveries often range from 10 to 15 minutes.

The regulatory push arrives as India formalizes labor laws for the gig economy. These laws define gig and platform workers in statute, granting legal status to millions of workers. Under these new labor laws, platforms are required to contribute 1% to 2% of their annual revenue to a government-managed social security fund, with contributions capped at 5% of payments made to the workers. According to the government think tank NITI Aayog, India’s gig economy employed about 7.7 million workers in 2020-21 and is projected to reach 23.5 million workers by 2029-30.

Why it matters

The Indian government’s intervention signals a shift in how regulators view the “instant delivery” model, prioritizing worker safety over speed as the gig economy scales rapidly.