After entering the food delivery market in India, Amazon has received approval to deliver alcohol in West Bengal. The West Bengal State Beverages Corporation, in a notice on June 19, said that the Amazon was found to be eligible and will now be invited to sign an MoU. This was first reported by Reuters. Alibaba-backed grocery delivery company BigBasket has also received approval. Food delivery companies Swiggy and Zomato, and alcohol delivery company HipBar have already begun delivery. On May 26, Zomato launched alcohol delivery in Bhubhaneshwar, and Swiggy launched it in Bhubhaneshwar and Rourkela cities in Odisha. While Swiggy has tied up with HyperVerge to enable AI-face recognition for mandatory age verification and user authentication for alcohol deliveries. Zomato claimed that it will carry out an age check of users at the time of ordering alcohol, as well as when the product is delivered. Users will be required to upload a valid ID proof to be eligible for ordering, which will later be verified by the delivery person at the time of handing over the order. On May 21, both Swiggy and Zomato began home delivery of alcohol in Ranchi.
