Mumbai is the largest Indian city having a population of approximately 18 million.
One interesting thing about this populated city is its lunch delivery service known as ‘Dabbey walas’. These people pick up lunch boxes straight from people’s kitchen and deliver it to its rightful owner.
There have been no misplacement cases in the performing of this task. Karan, who is a leader of the ‘dabbey wala’ association, claims that they are 99.9 per cent accurate in delivering the lunch boxes to their correct destinations.
More than 5000 dabbey walas deliver these boxes on a daily basis to around 200000 office going people.
The most popular modes of transportation amongst these dabbey walas are cycle and local trains. Every box carries a particular code that allows its accurate delivery. The code consists of figures and different colors to distinguish it from one another.
From balancing large trays carrying lunch boxes on their head to loading them onto bicycles and trains, these ‘dabba walas’ make up an essential part of the city.
They are an institution on their own. This business has been thriving in India for the past 125 years, when a Parsi banker said he wanted regular home-cooked meals delivered to his office in Fort, south Mumbai.
The city could be facing a storm, or flood but the dabbey wala will make sure that your lunch will reach you on time.