Karnataka: BS Yediyurappa launches home-delivery helpline

BENGALURU: Chief minister BS Yediyurappa on Tuesday launched the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike's ambitious home-delivery helpline service as part of his government's efforts to discourage people from stepping out even for buying groceries, vegetables or medicines during the lockdown.

The chief minister said more than 18,000 shops, including chemists and vegetable sellers, have registered themselves on the BBMP's WhatsApp helpline number (080 6191 4960).

The civic body has introduced the service in association with the Karnataka State Disaster Management Authority.

The BBMP, Yediyurappa said, has decided to extend the helpline service to the whole of Bengaluru after successfully piloting it in the Bengaluru South constituency with MP Tejasvi Surya’s help. There had been about 11,000 transactions in Bengaluru South in the last seven days, he said. Customers need to pay a fee of Rs. 10 per delivery, the CM added.

“The speciality of this service is that it works on the most basic & ubiquitous tech platform — a call or a WhatsApp message. You need not install any new app,” Surya said in a tweet.

“It’s the country’s first WhatsApp botenabled SuperApp. The platform is India’s first integrated voice and messaging platform providing citizens with instant services to order groceries, fruits, vegetables, medicines and essentials through an ecosystem of 16,000 merchants across Bangalore and best in class delivery partners to bring it right to an individual’s doorstep,” Surya said in a press statement.

“We’ve developed the platform in such a way that whenever a customer places an order, the items are bought from the store located closest to the customer’s house. We have thus ensured that even your neighbourhood store is able to conduct sufficient trade during the lockdown,” the statement said.

“The BBMP Covid19 home delivery service became possible because Dunzo, Rapido, Swiggy, Housejoy, ShopG & other startups came to support the city in this time of crisis,” the MP said in another tweet.

Last week, the BBMP commissioner had tweeted that customers must buy their needs only through home-delivery by placing their orders on this number.

Some citizens were, however, sceptical. One of them tweeted, asking whom to contact if a request for groceries did not work, since the BBMP does not respond to complaints going by his past experience. Another citizen wanted to know what would the delivery personnel do if their bikes break down during their delivery rides, since two-wheeler mechanics are all closed.