<p>The advent of super-fast delivery of groceries has created a new headache: neighbourhoods are complaining about crowds of delivery agents waiting round the clock at stores and warehouses.</p>.<p>Over the past year, ‘dark stores’ set up by app-based delivery services have mushroomed across the city. A dark store refers to a distribution centre that exclusively serves online shoppers. </p>.<p>Last week, a tweet from a fellow Bengalurean got netizens talking: “Dunzo rush at express Mart at 9:50 pm in Indiranagar in Bangalore. 100 orders received in 10 minutes.” </p>.<p><strong><span class="bold">Complaint filed</span></strong></p>.<p>iChange Indiranagar, a resident welfare association (RWA), filed a complaint against a Zepto dark store on CMH Road. “On April 29, the police informed us that they had issued a warning to the store but still the situation hasn’t got any better,” says Sneha Nandihal, co-founder. </p>.<p>She suggests dark stores and warehouses be set up away from residential areas. “CMH Road is a residential area. Having the store here has led to blocked parking and footpaths,” she adds.</p>.<p>Minakshi Prabhu, a resident of the area, says Dunzo delivery staff take over the footpaths and stores all day. “My kids and I used to walk past 80ft Road, where the store is located. But now, we no longer feel comfortable. It is a nuisance to have large groups of men standing around in residential spaces,” she says. </p>.<p>A similar situation escalated in Koramangala, leading to a dark store by Swiggy getting shut down last month. “At first, we had smaller problems like parking on the footpaths. Later, delivery agents started relieving themselves on the footpath, and they were constantly sitting across random houses and chatting, using vile language. We received many complaints from women in the locality,” says Nitin Seshadri, secretary, Koramangala 3rd Block RWA.</p>.<p>The residential block has space allotted for commercial establishments. “Only essential services are allowed to function here, that too in a 500 sq ft area. Another reason the residents have a problem with the dark store is that it is not exactly an essential service,” he says. </p>.<p>Sixty to 70 delivery agents were constantly around, and a fight broke out among them last week. “A huge crowd gathered and finally, the cops had to get involved. The store shut down and moved to a more commercial locality,” he says. </p>.<p>He believes there is no need for a 10-minute delivery service in Bengaluru. “It puts not only the delivery agents in danger but also everyone around them,” he argues. Minakshi says the convenience of quick delivery comes at a cost, and “the cost is our freedom”. </p>.<p><strong><span class="bold">Delivery agents’ POV</span></strong></p>.<p>Ramu (name changed), a delivery agent with Swiggy, says business, dull since the second wave, has picked up now in a big way. “For a couple of months, we have seen a rush of food orders, especially towards the evening. There are times when we get 50 orders in five minutes,” he says. </p>.<p>However, the rise in demand has led to increased competition among delivery agents. “More and more youngsters have joined in and there is constant competition to get the most orders delivered on time. We have no option but to constantly stay around the dark stores and warehouses,” says a Dunzo delivery agent. </p>.<p><strong>Cop speaks </strong></p>.<p>“We have not received any such complaints from residents. If we do, we will look into the matter and check the legality of the situation about whether such dark stores or small warehouses can be situated in residential blocks. If there is anything illegal, we will raise the matter with the concerned authority, which would be BBMP,” informed a senior police official from the South East division of Bengaluru. </p>.<p><strong>Changes ahead</strong></p>.<p>Taking into consideration the complaints from residents, Dunzo plans to assign designated waiting areas for delivery agents.</p>.<p>“There have been instances of delivery partners crowding up outside Dunzo warehouses. We apologise for the inconvenience. As an immediate measure, we have decided to pause incoming orders to a particular warehouse when an unexpected spike in orders is observed. This will ensure that the area around a warehouse will only have the right number of delivery partners waiting. We will also have a designated waiting area inside the warehouse premises in the next few weeks. In the long run, we are planning to find localities that are away from residential areas for our new warehouses,” a spokesperson told Metrolife.</p>
<p>The advent of super-fast delivery of groceries has created a new headache: neighbourhoods are complaining about crowds of delivery agents waiting round the clock at stores and warehouses.</p>.<p>Over the past year, ‘dark stores’ set up by app-based delivery services have mushroomed across the city. A dark store refers to a distribution centre that exclusively serves online shoppers. </p>.<p>Last week, a tweet from a fellow Bengalurean got netizens talking: “Dunzo rush at express Mart at 9:50 pm in Indiranagar in Bangalore. 100 orders received in 10 minutes.” </p>.<p><strong><span class="bold">Complaint filed</span></strong></p>.<p>iChange Indiranagar, a resident welfare association (RWA), filed a complaint against a Zepto dark store on CMH Road. “On April 29, the police informed us that they had issued a warning to the store but still the situation hasn’t got any better,” says Sneha Nandihal, co-founder. </p>.<p>She suggests dark stores and warehouses be set up away from residential areas. “CMH Road is a residential area. Having the store here has led to blocked parking and footpaths,” she adds.</p>.<p>Minakshi Prabhu, a resident of the area, says Dunzo delivery staff take over the footpaths and stores all day. “My kids and I used to walk past 80ft Road, where the store is located. But now, we no longer feel comfortable. It is a nuisance to have large groups of men standing around in residential spaces,” she says. </p>.<p>A similar situation escalated in Koramangala, leading to a dark store by Swiggy getting shut down last month. “At first, we had smaller problems like parking on the footpaths. Later, delivery agents started relieving themselves on the footpath, and they were constantly sitting across random houses and chatting, using vile language. We received many complaints from women in the locality,” says Nitin Seshadri, secretary, Koramangala 3rd Block RWA.</p>.<p>The residential block has space allotted for commercial establishments. “Only essential services are allowed to function here, that too in a 500 sq ft area. Another reason the residents have a problem with the dark store is that it is not exactly an essential service,” he says. </p>.<p>Sixty to 70 delivery agents were constantly around, and a fight broke out among them last week. “A huge crowd gathered and finally, the cops had to get involved. The store shut down and moved to a more commercial locality,” he says. </p>.<p>He believes there is no need for a 10-minute delivery service in Bengaluru. “It puts not only the delivery agents in danger but also everyone around them,” he argues. Minakshi says the convenience of quick delivery comes at a cost, and “the cost is our freedom”. </p>.<p><strong><span class="bold">Delivery agents’ POV</span></strong></p>.<p>Ramu (name changed), a delivery agent with Swiggy, says business, dull since the second wave, has picked up now in a big way. “For a couple of months, we have seen a rush of food orders, especially towards the evening. There are times when we get 50 orders in five minutes,” he says. </p>.<p>However, the rise in demand has led to increased competition among delivery agents. “More and more youngsters have joined in and there is constant competition to get the most orders delivered on time. We have no option but to constantly stay around the dark stores and warehouses,” says a Dunzo delivery agent. </p>.<p><strong>Cop speaks </strong></p>.<p>“We have not received any such complaints from residents. If we do, we will look into the matter and check the legality of the situation about whether such dark stores or small warehouses can be situated in residential blocks. If there is anything illegal, we will raise the matter with the concerned authority, which would be BBMP,” informed a senior police official from the South East division of Bengaluru. </p>.<p><strong>Changes ahead</strong></p>.<p>Taking into consideration the complaints from residents, Dunzo plans to assign designated waiting areas for delivery agents.</p>.<p>“There have been instances of delivery partners crowding up outside Dunzo warehouses. We apologise for the inconvenience. As an immediate measure, we have decided to pause incoming orders to a particular warehouse when an unexpected spike in orders is observed. This will ensure that the area around a warehouse will only have the right number of delivery partners waiting. We will also have a designated waiting area inside the warehouse premises in the next few weeks. In the long run, we are planning to find localities that are away from residential areas for our new warehouses,” a spokesperson told Metrolife.</p>