Zomato has introduced a new feature called Food Rescue to minimise food wastage, announced the food delivery platform CEO Deepinder Goyal on Sunday.

Announcing the new feature on X, Goyal said the decision, to introduce the new feature, was taken to prevent the tremendous amount of food wastage due to order cancellation on the platform.

Committed to minimising food wastage, the Zomato boss said: “We don’t encourage order cancellation at Zomato, because it leads to a tremendous amount of food wastage.”

Goyal said despite having stringent policies, and a no-refund policy for cancellations, more than 4 lakh perfectly good orders get cancelled, for various reasons by customers.

He said the top concern for the online food delivery platform, the restaurant industry, and even the customers who cancel these orders, is to somehow save the food from going to waste.

With the launch of the new feature, Food Rescue, cancelled orders will now pop up for nearby customers, who can grab them at an unbeatable price, in their original untampered packaging, and receive them in just minutes.

According to Zomato, the cancelled order will pop up on the app for customers within a 3 km radius of the delivery partner carrying the order. To ensure freshness, the option to claim will only be available for a few minutes.

The online food delivery platform will not keep any proceeds except the required government taxes and the amount paid by the new customer will be shared with the original customer (if they made payment online) and with the restaurant partner.

Orders containing items sensitive to distances or temperature such as ice creams, shakes, smoothies, and certain perishable items, will not be eligible for Food Rescue.

Restaurant partners will continue to receive compensation for the original cancelled order, plus a portion of the amount paid by the new customer if the order is claimed, the company said. “Most restaurants have opted in for this feature, and can opt of it easily whenever they want, directly from their control panels,” it added.

The delivery partners will be compensated fully for the entire trip, from the initial pickup to the final drop-off at the new customer’s location, it said.

Food Rescue will show up on the customers’ home page automatically if there’s a cancelled order available for them to grab. The Customers have to refresh the home page to check for any newly available orders which need to be rescued.

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday took a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his ‘Ek hai toh safe hai’ remarks.

Sharing a picture featuring PM Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Industrialist Gautam Adani, SEBI chief Madhabi Puri Buch and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on X, Gandhi wrote in Hindi, “’Mann ki baat, ab jubaan pe’ (What is in the heart, now on the tongue).”

Earlier during a rally in Maharashtra, PM Modi coined a new slogan, ‘Ek Hain to Safe Hain’ (If we are united, we are safe), to attack the Opposition.

PM Modi accused the Congress of dividing the society, caste and communities. “During the entire period that Congress ruled over India, Congress has always resorted to divide and rule. It created rifts within the SC-Dalits, ST-Adivasis and OBCs. For a safe and united Maharashtra, choose BJP-led Mahayuti…ek hai toh safe hai,” PM Modi said.

Responding to PM Modi’s remarks, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge slammed the PM for the ‘ek hai to safe hai’ narrative. Kharge stressed that many big Congress have laid down their lives to unite the country and attacked the BJP, saying, “You only divide but blame others. You say ‘batenge toh katenge’. Those who want the country to remain united will never pass such divisive slogans.” “The truth is that you are the ones who divide and you are the ones who cut, but you blame others. You are involved in baatna and kaatna,” he said.

Addressing Samvidhan Bachao Sammelan in Mumbai on Sunday, Kharge said: “BJP is giving new slogans these days. I just want to ask is there any danger in the country? If the country is in danger, it is from BJP-RSS. Because these are the people who talk about division and killing from morning to evening. We have always tried to keep the country united. Indira Gandhi ji was martyred for keeping the country united.”

Earlier in the day, Kharge lashed out at PM Modi for his remarks on the blank Constitution book also, saying it is necessary to enroll Modi in a primary school again for his remarks on the red book of the Constitution.

During a press conference after launching the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi ‘s (MVA) manifesto for Maharashtra Assembly elections, Kharge displayed a red book of the Constitution and said it was not blank as was being projected by PM Modi and his party BJP.

On the Prime Minister and BJP equating a red book of the Constitution with urban Naxalism, Kharge said Modi gave a similar copy in 2017 to then President Ram Nath Kovind.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday lashed out at the Congress-JMM coalition over its corruption and said when the people of Jharkhand are hankering for a handful of sand, the alliance is busy selling rivers, streams, and mountains in the state, adding their leaders have even built luxurious houses by smuggling sand. PM Modi alleged that they are taking bribes even for birth and death certificates.

Addressing the rally in Jharkhand’s Gumala, the Prime Minister said: “This is your money, you are its owner and Modi will not let your money be looted.” He added that “those who have looted will have to return it and spend their lives in jail” once his party comes to power in the state.

JMM-Congress have nothing to do with the issue of the people, they are filling their coffers, Modi said.

Hitting out at the alliance, PM Modi said: “You have seen the mountains of notes of the JMM and Congress leaders and ministers. I have been a Chief Minister and even become a Prime Minister, but I have never seen such huge mountains of notes in my life. I saw such mountains for the first time on TV. So many notes came out that the machines got tired of counting them.”

“If you divide into castes then the strength of the tribals will diminish. That’s why I say – if we stay united, we will be safe,” he reiterated his statement targeting the Congress party.

Till there was no unity between OBCs, tribals and Dalits, the Congress kept forming governments at the Centre, claimed Modi.

“Beware of Congress-JMM’s evil designs and conspiracies. They can go to any extent to snatch power. Congress has been an opponent of SC, ST, and OBC unity since Independence,” Modi said.

“More than 125 sub-castes are considered OBCs in the Chotanagpur region. Congress-JMM wants to break the OBC unity by pitting sub-castes against each other. I warn you ‘ek rahoge toh safe rahoge’,” he added. He said a BJP-led government was needed in Jharkhand to drive out infiltrators and eradicate corruption.