Inflation doesn't even spare dabbawalas: Iconic Mumbai service rates hiked by Rs 100/month

Mumbai: The iconic Mumbai ‘dabbawalas’ orlunch box carriers, have hiked the costs of their delivery byRs 100 a month to cope up with the rising cost of essentialcommodities.

“We are requesting our customers to support us in thetime of crisis, as we will not be able to survive at a timewhen costs of essential commodities are escalating. We do notwant our dabbawalas to commit suicide, when they fail to payup for the bare minimal comforts of life,” Raghunath Medge,former president of Mumbai dabbawalas Association told PTI.

Medge attributed the steep hike to rise in prices ofvegetables and costs of transport.

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“Each year, we made sure that a minimal hike is done.But in the last one year prices of vegetables have rose
steeply and now, even transportation has become costlier.

“The prices of petrol have once again been hiked. Wecannot take this anymore,” Medge added.

Mumbai’s 5,000 odd ‘dabbawalas’ have been in action forover 125 years now, without any halts in their work patternand deliver about 1 lakh lunches everyday to office goers,school children and students.

The dabbawalas, that lie in an income group of Rs8,000-10,000 a month, have a Six Sigma quality certificate and
a global business fan club, which includes Prince Charles andRichard Branson.

Their unique management and operational modelshave become subjects of management study beyond textbooks forglobal business schools.

PTI