Monday, May 20

“Will Roll It Back If…”: Zomato CEO After ‘Pure Veg Fleet’ Plan Criticised As ‘Casteist’, ‘Discriminatory’

Edited by Shibu NK
"Will Roll It Back If…" Zomato CEO After ‘Pure Veg Fleet’ Plan Criticised As ‘Casteist’, ‘Discriminatory’

Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal‘s unveiling of the “Pure Veg Mode” and corresponding “Pure Veg Fleet” to cater to India’s vegetarian population has stirred controversy, with critics labelling the move as “casteist” and “discriminatory.” Following backlash, Mr Goyal responded to the criticism, reaffirming the company’s commitment to customer preferences while addressing concerns raised by detractors.

In his response, Mr Goyal acknowledged the overwhelmingly positive reception to the initiative, particularly among young consumers whose families adhere to vegetarian dietary practices. He emphasized that the Pure Veg Mode strictly serves a dietary preference and is not intended to discriminate based on religion or caste.

He also promised that the company will roll it back if they see any significant negative repercussions of this change. “There’s an opinion that some societies and RWAs will now not let our regular fleet in. We will stay alert for any such cases and work with these RWAs to not let this happen. We understand our social responsibility due to this change, and we will not back down from solving it when the need arises. And I promise, that if we see any significant negative social repercussions of this change, we will roll it back in a heartbeat,” he wrote on an X post.

Explaining the need for separate delivery fleets, Goyal cited instances where food spills from previous orders could affect the olfactory experience of subsequent orders, necessitating the segregation of fleets to maintain the integrity of vegetarian food. He assured that participation in the Pure Veg Fleet would not discriminate based on the dietary preferences of delivery partners.

Addressing concerns about potential societal repercussions, Mr Goyal pledged to work with residential welfare associations (RWAs) to prevent any discrimination against Zomato’s regular delivery fleet. He underscored the company’s commitment to social responsibility and promised to roll back the initiative if significant negative consequences emerged.

Criticism of Zomato’s plan came from various quarters, with author and activist Dr. Meena Kandasamy raising concerns about caste implications and urging the company to ensure that only vegetarian drivers handle orders from the Pure Veg Fleet. Journalist and digital rights activist Nikhil Pahwa criticized the move as “idiotic” and questioned the potential discrimination against customers with specific dietary requirements.

Additionally, social media users expressed dismay over the perceived discriminatory nature of the initiative, with some threatening to delete the app from their phones in protest. Critics warned that the segregation of delivery fleets could lead to the exclusion of Zomato’s regular delivery personnel from certain housing societies.