Amid lockdown, Flipkart to resume delivery of essential goods
A day after announcing the suspension of all its services in compliance with the lockdown put in place by the Indian government, Flipkart has taken the decision to resume operations to some extent. The company has put up an updated notice on its website that says it will resume the delivery of essential goods, high-priority products, soon. Here's all about it.
Services suspended entirely in light of lockdown, police's action
When Prime Minister Modi announced the 21-day, nation-wide lockdown due to COVID-19 pandemic, Flipkart stopped taking new orders entirely and began notifying customers about the possible delay in the delivery of their existing orders. The action came as the government's message regarding the operation of e-commerce services remained unclear and reports of several delivery boys being harassed/halted by the police flooded the internet.
However, now, the company is going to resume deliveries
Now, a day later, Flipkart has replaced the initial suspension notice on its website/app with a new one saying that it will resume services partially by allowing the delivery of essential goods. "(We) are resuming our grocery and essentials services later today," company chief Kalyan Krishnamurthy told NDTV while noting that the decision has been taken after discussions with central and state government officials.
Safe passage assured for products, delivery staff
Krishnamurthy emphasized that he has been assured that law enforcement authorities would give safe passage to Flipkart delivery workers, without halting the company's supply chain in any way. To note, prior to this, companies like Big Basket, Grofers, Medlife, MilkBasket, and Zomato had also reported instances of their delivery staffers being harassed by cops enforcing the lockdown in various parts of India.
Meanwhile, here's what you will get under 'essential products' category
Flipkart would prioritize the delivery of essential goods, which means you will be able to place orders for groceries (wherever applicable) as well as items like staples, packaged foods, health, hygiene, personal safety products. "Your needs remain our priority, and we are working to deliver essentials to you as soon as we can," the company says on its website.
Amazon is already prioritizing essential needs
Amazon, Flipkart's arch-rival, had already announced that it will be prioritizing essential needs throughout the lockdown, and has halted new orders and deliveries for less needed products, say, like clothes, electronics.
