As shops and commercial establishments in Chennai are beginning to resume business after over a month-long lockdown, residents who had placed orders with the state government-run farm produce portal, E-Thottam, have been left in the lurch. Many customers have been waiting for their orders of fruits and vegetables since the last week of April.
A tweet by Srini Swaminathan, a Chennai-based educator, about the inordinate delay in receiving his order and the lack of response from the Department of Horticulture and Plantation Crops has found resonance with similarly disgruntled customers. While many complained that their orders were also pending, some even stated that none of the nearly 20 phone numbers listed on the website were responsive to their calls.
Srini Swaminathan, 40, placed his order on April 29 for the first time, to try the platform amid the lockdown.
“I live with my parents who are both over 65-years-old. Hence, in order to avoid stepping out to buy vegetables, I tried doing this,” he tells TNM. He ordered produce worth Rs 1,000 online, hoping it would be delivered to his house in a couple of days. He finally received his order on May 6, an hour after tweeting about it.
The government of Tamil Nadu launched e-Thottam (meaning, electronic farm), a website and a mobile app, in August 2019, to help customers buy vegetables and fruits directly from farmers through the state government’s Horticulture Department. The app, which had a lukewarm response initially, became popular after a statewide lockdown was imposed from March 24 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Customers can order vegetable packs starting at Rs 300 and fruit packs starting at Rs 500. Separate vegetables can also be ordered on the portal.
For Pradyum Murali, a 30-year-old ERP (enterprise resource planning) consultant living in Abhiramapuram, Chennai, his experience using the portal has been good. He has placed over six orders overall for his parents and in-laws since April 13. “For the initial orders till the April 26th one, the delivery was prompt. The delivery executives called me in the morning to navigate and then delivered it by 4 pm or 5 pm,” he says.
However, his latest orders, which he placed on April 26 and May 1, are yet to be delivered.
Apart from the delays, there have also been complaints from customers about the quality of the produce being substandard.
Jayasree from Chennai had ordered a couple of vegetables a few weeks ago, which was delivered in two days. “One product was not good at all, mostly gone bad. This time again we ordered a pack of vegetables, yet to receive it. It’s been a week since I placed the order,” she says.
The glitches in product quality and delivery are made worse by the complete lack of response on the helplines mentioned in the website, say customers.
Apart from four common grievance reporting numbers, the website divides Chennai into 12 divisions under four clusters, each of which have contact numbers of the officers supervising the operations in those areas.
“Not one of these listed numbers are attended. Most of them say that it is out of coverage or it just drops. The number mentioned in my receipt didn’t work either. I have been trying to call all those numbers since yesterday, but in vain. Nobody responds to the SMSes or emails either,” Srini explains.
Pradyum too faced similar issues when he tried to get an estimated date of delivery for his pending orders. “It (ordering online) was easier than standing in long queues during weekdays. They can at least respond to calls or emails or have an estimated delivery date (along with the order itself),” he adds.
The biggest disappointment for customers across the spectrum has been the lack of updation about the status of their orders.
“We have seen the government being efficient in other areas. We have been getting calls every day about the health status of my parents. Why can’t the same efficiency be ensured in this also, especially when it is an essential item,” asks Srini. He believes the government rolled out the concept of e-thottam without thinking about the extent of logistical support needed to make it a success.
Srini finally got his order delivered within an hour of him tweeting his grievance on Twitter, thus raising another important question about the accessibility of customer grievance redressal available in a government service portal.
“I will not order again because I do not want this added anxiety around my order. I prefer walking out, picking up fruits and vegetables, paying and coming home. I don’t want to keep following up and wonder whether or not I will get the order,” he says.
When TNM contacted the Department of Horticulture to know the reason for delays in the delivery of orders placed since the last week of April, a senior officer at the Department says that the ‘lockdown within lockdown’ in Chennai (between April 26 and April 29) created a logistical slowdown in the supply chain.
“The restricted lockdown, the shifting of the fruit market to Madhavaram and its subsequent closure all had an impact on the movement of orders. Just before the lockdown, we faced a surge in the number of orders upto four times the normal amount;most of it involved fruits too. Hence, it has become complicated and there is a lag in deliveries. We assure that all the orders will be cleared in a day or two,” he says.
He adds that in case it is not possible to honour the order, the amount will be refunded to the customers.
When questioned about the lack of response from the Department for customer grievances, the officer points out that a dedicated control room has been set up to deal with farmers, suppliers and customers of the Department.
“The volume of calls is high and we have ten members manning the four phone lines we have set up. I think it should be sufficient to reach us. But if the call volume becomes higher, we will look into it and do the needful,” he adds.