The social networking sites and also a few news portals have suggested that online supermarket localbanya.com has run into financial troubles, but the promoters have refuted charges of systematically erasing their digital tracks and pulling the plug off their website.Various theories have been doing the rounds since November last year, when the startup suspended deliveries. Till Monday, a statement on the localbanya website read: “Your banya is upgrading his technology and services. We will be back shortly with more exciting features and a far better delivery experience. We can't wait for you to experience the new and improved localbanya."The theories gained credence on Monday night after the website couldn't be accessed. Former employees and vendors, who haven't been paid, took to Facebook and Twitter, putting up posts such as, “Houses are locked, civil and criminal notices are being sent for fraud. This would mean that sooner or later cases will be filed in courts. These blue-eyed professionals will soon be labelled as white-collared fraudsters." While the former employees and vendors claim that localbanya founders Karan Mehrotra , his wife Rashi Choudhary, and co-founder Amit Naik are untraceable, this newspaper was able to contact Mehrotra over the phone.“We are working on building a new platform," Mehrotra said. When asked about the website being inaccessible from Monday night, he said that he would speak with his tech team. “People can conjecture, but we will, in a couple of weeks, come out with statement on why localbanya shut operations and what we plan to do next," Mehrotra told Mumbai Mirror.He also denied having deleted his online tracks. “I am still on social networking sites. It is just that I have taken a backseat," Mehrotra said.Localbanya, according to its former employees and vendors, had raised $20 million in funding after its inception in 2012. As per a written complaint made by the employees to the Bandra police, the founders owe Rs 1.5 crore to lenders, around Rs 2 crore to family and friends, besides around Rs 2 crore to the vendors and employees.Talent acquisition specialist Neha Asthana said that given the low margins in food and grocery retailing, online companies need a constant flow of money. “This is more so in food tech startups, where expectations are high all the time while margins are very less," she said.Industry observers believe that logistics and consumer promotion alone would account for 20% of the total cost for the online grocers. “With huge competition in online grocery retailing space, the companies should now look at how to make the business sustainable and generate profit," one expert said.