There has been a sharp increase in the number of women working in the delivery industry since 2018, as per estimates cited in a report by The Times Of India. Around 10 lakh employees work in the delivery sector of which 67,900 are women - the number has increased from 40,000 in 2018.

A spokesperson for Zomato told TOI that the number of women applying to be delivery partners in metropolitan as well as small cities has increased. For delivery, bicycles are being rolled out for women who do not know how to ride bikes. The reason behind women opting for jobs in the delivery sector is flexibility primarily apart from other factors such as better pay parity.

While speaking to TOI, Reena Gupta, who started working for Zomato last year, said that she "decided to give it a shot" even though it was an "unusual choice". She joined Zomato after her husband lost his job at a medical store. She is not only able to set her working hours but also earns up to Rs 6,000 every week - Reena delivers up to 20 orders a day.

Preethisha, India's first transgender food delivery person with Uber Eats, lives in Chennai and also shared her experience with TOI. "Today, gender doesn't stop people from pursuing opportunities. With more women and marginalised communities in the workforce, the future will be even better," Preethisha said.

However, safety is a concern for women working in the delivery sector. But employers are taking care of it. Swiggy, in fact, has designated "safe zones" for women employees in over 20 cities.

"They work in shifts that end before 6 pm and operate in areas identified as safe zones," a spokesperson for the company told TOI. Family pressure is also a concern but women like Harshika Pandya are strong enough to take their decisions irrespective of such factors.

"When I started out, my family said it was a man's job. But I stuck to my decision," Harshika, a Zomato delivery partner in Surat, told TOI.

Watch this video to know more about Harshika Pandya:

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