Karnataka residents you can now safely practice social distancing without having to step out to get your essentials!
The Karnataka Government has recently announced that all e-commerce platforms such as Flipkart and Amazon will be allowed to deliver all types of goods during the 14 days statewide lockdown that starts from tonight.
This decision comes as the government is struggling to keep in check the surging COVID-19 cases in Bengaluru.
Released late on Monday evening, the guidelines by the Karnataka Govt. also stated that home delivery of all types of goods would be allowed in the state, thereby balancing the demand of offline traders.
Offline retailers and traders as of late have been protesting against the e-commerce giants being allowed to function alone while they being ordered to keep their establishments closed
The guidelines mentioned that the state would let all goods be delivered via e-commerce and home delivery without distinguishing between essential and non-essential goods that other states such as Maharashtra, Delhi, and a few others have done quite recently.
This piece of information has been confirmed via e-commerce players as well. Under the condition of anonymity, a senior executive at a leading e-com marketplace said that the Karnataka Govt. has allowed both e-commerce and shops to function via doorstep deliveries to ensure that consumers won’t have to step out for shopping their daily neds and stay safe within their homes.
Note here that besides refraining from imposing curbs on e-commerce deliveries, the state has also encouraged 24×7 delivery of essential items. This will help minimise the movement of consumers outside their home along with restricting the operations of shops and kiranas selling groceries, veggies, meats, etc. only from 6-10 am.
In a statement about the announcement, Hari Menon, Co-founder and CEO of BigBasket, said that orders from Karnataka started surging as soon as Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa announced the new restriction protocols.
Menon also mentioned that BigBasket has seen order volumes shoot up by a whopping 23%-25% in April compared to the previous month, while Grofers said it saw orders spike 3x in Karnataka after the announcement.
All in all, it is well understood that the Karnataka Government has made a well-thought and educated move when it comes to imposing the restrictions. It suggests that the state holds the view that the economy is important even in the face of a growing number of cases in Bangalore. Thus, both e-commerce and local kiranas will be able to benefit from consumers who want to get their essentials and non-essentials delivered to their doorstep without having to step out.
It now remains to be seen by when the second run of the virulent COVID-19 gets wiped from the country. We will keep you updated on all future developments. Until then, stay safe and stay tuned.
