Covid crisis: Delivery boys, Ola, Uber drivers hit hard

Around 15K move to local admn, seek relief package or deployment to ongoing pandemic management services

Sanjay Yadav

Gurugram, May 1

Hit hard by lockdown, a fleet of around 15,000 food delivery boys moved to local administration seeking relief package or deployment in ongoing pandemic management services. The delivey boys and around 12,000 drivers of Ola and Uber cabs claim to be worst hit by this lockdown saying that they are left with no money to even manage square meals for their families.

They said while we were getting work initially but after a pizza delivery boy tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Delhi, there has been a reduction in demand throwing many of them out of job. Majority of these persons work on incentive per order basis and have not been able to earn anything since weeks.

“Our entire fraternity has been hit as people no longer seek deliveries and even if they do, online aggregators have reduced incentives adding to their woes. We too are corona warriors, who are putting our lives at risk to keep the supply chain running. Our families are struggling for food and it’s high time that the administration turns attention to us. We don’t seek charity but are demanding deployment to administration aided deliveries so that we continue to earn with dignity,” said Suresh Kaadiyan, representative of delivery boys of Sector 10, 14, 15, 31 and DLF.

They also claimed that the companies using their services were not even providing them with sanitisers and masks. Drivers and owners of Ola and Uber cabs too were facing same problems, though Ola is running an initiative, seeking support from customers, but that is not enough, said many drivers. While some have started operating cabs under Ola emergency, providing pick and drop facility to hospital but it is not yielding much income to them and the drivers are scared of health risks too.

“From day one of lockdown, I am devoid of job and staying at home. We cannot even pay the installments now. We have been requesting government to use our vehicles for official relief purposes but have not got any reply,” said Pravin Arora, a cab owner.