Swiggy Delivery Executive Dies In Road Crash In Hyderabad

At a time when foodtech and quick-commerce startups have been seeing protests by their delivery executives, a Swiggy delivery executive died in a road accident last night in Gachibowli, Hyderabad after colliding with a speeding tractor. 

The delivery executive, named Adil Ahmed Taher, met with an accident while en route to deliver an order. He was rushed to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

Taher is survived by his wife and a two-month-old daughter.

According to eyewitness accounts, the tractor was coming from the wrong side. An FIR has been registered at the Gachibowli Police Station against the tractor driver.

Swiggy has gotten in touch with the family of the deceased and has already processed his hospital charges, sources told Inc42. The foodtech startup is also in the process of processing the insurance amount to be paid to Taher’s family. 

“We are deeply saddened by this unfortunate incident and have been in touch with the family of our delivery executive Adil Taher ever since the incident. While nothing can make up for this loss, we are committed to supporting them in all ways possible. We are processing an insurance grant of 10 Lakhs and have covered the medical expenses,” a Swiggy spokesperson told Inc42.

The startup said that the safety of its delivery executives is of utmost importance, and they are not made aware of the delivery commitments, nor are they incentivised or disincentivised based on delivery time.

Commenting on the matter, Shaik Salauddin, founder of Telangana Gig and Platform Workers Union (TGPWU), said, “We have worker compensation laws for injury and death suffered on the job. Compensation is calculated on the basis of one’s age. As a union, can you take them to court on this? Maybe then they’ll value workers’ lives more than how many lakh orders they delivered.”

Earlier this week, Swiggy delivery executives staged a strike against low pay and poor working conditions in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.

The associations representing delivery executives have warned that the protests will intensify if the demands are not met. The delivery executives’ associations in Bengaluru gave a week’s time to Swiggy to act on their demands.

In an earlier conversation with Inc42, Salauddin said, “Investors of Swiggy should see the kind of work conditions they are enabling by investing in such companies who facilitate exploitative work practices.”

To avoid a protest, quick-commerce startup Dunzo allegedly sent a message to its delivery executives threatening to permanently suspend any delivery partner whose delivery ID was tracked at any protest site.

The quick-commerce business model has come under intense scrutiny across the country as questions arise on the model’s need and viability. With Zomato, Swiggy, BigBasket, Dunzo and Zepto promising delivery times of less than 30 minutes, there are an increasing number of voices against it.

The outrage reached the Parliament as well, with DMK MP Kanimozhi raising questions regarding the same earlier this week. Several other MPs have also raised concerns on social media about the quick-commerce model.

The number of gig workers in India is set to reach 23.5 Mn by the end of this decade, accounting for more than 4.1% of the total livelihood. Government think tank NITI Aayog recently called for providing social security, paid sick leaves and other benefits to gig workers.