According to industry executives, the daily active gig workers on quick commerce platforms are currently running 10-12% below early-2026 levels. The timing is particularly damaging. Typically, quick commerce as well as food delivery platforms see an uptick in demand during this period due to Indian Premier League (IPL) matches.
Order fulfillment for quick grocery delivery services in Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru and Mumbai is being delayed, a senior executive said, while slots on platforms like Snabbit, Urban Company and Pronto are going dark in several pockets.
For instance, Zepto is offering its scheduled delivery option in some PIN codes where instant delivery is unavailable. Similarly, instant house help services are unavailable in multiple locations, with options only to schedule services after two-three days.
On-demand house help startup Pronto’s founder Anjali Sardana said there is a small but growing impact on the segment’s workforce. “We expect to see some impact on supply in the upcoming weeks due to the West Bengal elections, especially in the northern cities where we have some professionals from West Bengal,” she told ET.
Amid the ongoing shortage in workforce in cities and macroeconomic uncertainties, demand for gig workers, especially delivery riders, could rise 25% in the coming months, according to hiring platforms. This period typically sees a shortage of riders as summer sets in and workers head back to their native towns for harvest-related work.
ET reported on March 24 that platforms were already struggling to forecast rider availability ahead of peak summer demand and the IPL season and the supply-side squeeze is now arriving ahead of schedule.
“Around 10% of the gig workforce in the metros have returned to their hometowns,” said Sonal Arora, country manager, Gi Group Holdings. “The requirement for gig workers is increasing every year as existing firms expand operations and new ones open up.”
Amazon, Flipkart, Swiggy, Eternal, Zepto, Bigbasket, Urban Company and Snabbit didn’t respond to queries.
Increased incentives
To tackle this, platforms are offering incentives such as retention bonuses, additional shift bonuses and increased payouts per order to riders, experts said.
“A few weeks back our platform’s labour workforce headcount diminished by 20% but we have ramped up hiring,” said Ajay Rao, founder and CEO of third-party logistics platform Emiza. “We have increased incentives like attendance bonuses by 8% and onboarded more local workforce in our warehouses to ensure a steady supply chain.”
Emiza has warehouses in 12 cities across the country and offers logistics services primarily to direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands.
Meanwhile, Sankalp Sharma, head of operations at quick commerce enabler Zippee, said that the delivery riders’ savings has been impacted in metros.
“If a rider was saving Rs 7,000 per month, now he is saving Rs 3,000-4,000 as his expenses have gone up in metros. To ensure stabilised earnings, riders are working more hours a day,” he said, adding the platform has also increased incentives by 5-6% in the past few weeks.
However, experts said that the increase in incentives may not match past years which was around 15%, even as demand for gig workers has increased.