A Zepto delivery worker who died in a road accident while on duty in Gurugram’s Sector 65 late on Friday night has become the focus of a compensation dispute, prompting a protest outside the company’s distribution centre on Sunday.
The worker’s family and fellow delivery riders alleged that the company paid only Rs 3.25 lakh despite an assured compensation package of Rs 15 lakh. Colleagues placed his body in an ambulance outside the distribution centre gate to press their demand. The company had not issued an official statement on the matter at the time of reporting.
Dharampal, a native of Rithori village in Agra who had been living in rented accommodation in Gurugram’s Ramgarh area, was on his way to deliver an order near the MR Estate Office in Sector 65 at around 11 pm when an unidentified vehicle allegedly struck his motorcycle from behind and fled the scene.
Passers-by alerted the police, who rushed Dharampal to the government hospital in Sector 10, where doctors declared him dead. Gurugram Police conducted his post-mortem examination on Sunday.
By Sunday evening, fellow delivery workers and family members had gathered outside Zepto’s Sector 65 distribution centre, demanding compensation of Rs 15 lakh. The company subsequently shut the facility’s gates.
Dharampal’s brother, Jitendra Singh, told police that when he arrived at the scene, his brother was lying critically injured on the road after being hit from behind. Referring to the compensation package, Singh said Dharampal was covered by Rs 10 lakh under an accident insurance policy and a further Rs 5 lakh under personal accident insurance, taking the total cover to Rs 15 lakh.
According to Singh, the company initially paid only Rs 25,000. Following protests by the family, an additional Rs 3 lakh was released, bringing the total payout to Rs 3.25 lakh. He further alleged that while the standard payment for transporting a deceased worker’s body was Rs 50,000, the family received only Rs 25,000.
Sector 65 police have registered a case on the family’s complaint.
The incident has again highlighted the vulnerability of gig economy workers, who face road-related risks on a daily basis but often have limited recourse when disputes arise over insurance and compensation claims.
