After e-comm, logistics takes the quick route

Deliveries in minutes & hours new normal now

- SUGANDHA MUKHERJEE

IN A DOMINO effect of quick e-commerce, the race for faster delivery has become the defining metric of India’s logistics industry as well.

From same-day courier pickups to two-hour deliveries of festival gifts and groceries, the country’s delivery networks are being rebuilt for immediacy, reshaping the way consumers buy, and how businesses operate.

Courier platforms and logistics companies are rushing to keep pace with demand for instant and same-day services, investing in new fleets, technology, and fulfillment centres to match the shift. The country’s largest logistics player, Delhivery, has entered the short-haul segment with Delhivery Direct, an on-demand intracity delivery service now live in Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru. The service promises pickups within 15 minutes, marking the company’s move into the same-day market once dominated by app-based delivery startups.

The scale is staggering. In October 2025 alone, Delhivery processed more than 107 million e-commerce and freight shipments, dispatching 7.2 million parcels in a single day, which is a company record. More than 29 million packages were delivered within 48 hours and 13.6 million within 24. In Bengaluru, one delivery was completed in just two minutes.

"IN A FIRST for us, volumes during festive season reached 100 million orders last month," said Sahil Barua, cofounder and CEO of the firm.