Online platforms switch to e-payment mode in West Bengal

TNN | Updated: Apr 5, 2020, 10:13 IST

Image used for Representative purposes

KOLKATA: The Covid-19 scare has led online food delivery platforms Swiggy and Zomato to switch to electronic modes of payment as part of their social distancing norms. Customers on the Swiggy app were greeted with a ticker that said the move was meant 'to minimize contact between you and the delivery partner'.
There has been a sharp drop in home delivery orders since customers are wary to order food from restaurants, said Hotel and Restaurants' Association of Eastern India secretary Sudesh Poddar. "For most standalone restaurants, it is not feasible to operate kitchens depending solely on online delivery. Those which have always depended on home delivery orders, however, are operating for a reduced period. With the pandemic still raging, we don't see a return to normalcy soon," said Poddar. He said even if restaurants operated their kitchens for online orders, the volume of business is likely to be extremely low.