Dabbawala

You wake up in the early morning and remember your slacking off on a project that could devastate your job. Your spouse is asleep and you dont want him/her to wake and if you make your own meal it wont be that warm. An idea strikes you like thunder. You leave a note to your spouse saying they should call Dabbawala and pay them to bring you a warm tiffin. You leave home knowing your problem is solved.

Dabbawala is an organization that distributes hot tiffins to people who work in Mumbai. When I first heard of this organization, I didnt exactly care too much about it until I learnt they dont even use Internet or any communication systems. That is surprising, because they have to deliver around 100,000 lunches in about 4 hours. Each person in this organization must deliver about 200 tiffins in that short amount of time. Can you imagine that you have to deliver 200 cookies to 200 different people throughout New York. It would probably take you more than 4 hours.

The literal translation of "Dabbawala" is tiffin-man. The organization was made by the British because they didnt like the local food. Now it is Indian businessmen who use this service and the service provides cooking as well as delivering.

Imagine the same task, but the city is having a flood. The task would be suicidal, but, dabbawalas would do it anyway. In return, they all get a salary of 4,000 rupees regardless of their position in the organization. Most organizations dont have that type of system. It tells you how much they appreciate everyones service and treat everyone fairly.

This organization has to be well informed to complete their jobs. They have proved that you dont need all of our high tech gizmos to accomplish their goals. Can you imagine distributing the same 200 cookies without cell phones? Youd have to use brain, but most of the dabbas are illiterate or not able to read. They have to rely on their sense of direction in a busy city like Mumbai.

They are not absolutely perfect. They have their faults, but theyre very small. Such as 1 mistake in 6 million deliveries. That is a hard goal to accomplish. Even Forbes, an American magazine, interviewed dabbawala. Prince Charles, during a visit in India, personally decided to meet the organization in his busy schedule.

Dabbawalla: Environmentally friendly, Quality, and Reliable.