New Delhi: India’s race to deliver medicines within 30 minutes is revealing a reality that quick-commerce apps cannot escape: the fastest digital service still depends on licensed pharmacies, registered pharmacists and carefully managed local stocks.
Unlike groceries, prescription medicines cannot simply be stored in an ordinary dark store and delivered by a rider. India’s rules require eligible medicines to be supplied through licensed establishments, while prescription drugs must be dispensed by or under the supervision of a registered pharmacist.
The pharmacy remains at the heart of delivery
The growing demand for faster medicine delivery has pushed companies towards different models. Some are using their own pharmacy networks, while others are partnering with neighbourhood chemists or placing licensed pharmacy operations inside quick-commerce facilities.
Apollo Pharmacy, for instance, has a network of more than 7,500 stores and says deliveries can take as little as 19 minutes in select cities. Tata 1mg is using its retail pharmacies as fulfilment centres, while other platforms have experimented with partnerships with existing medical shops.
The approach allows companies to bring fulfilment points closer to customers without removing the pharmacist and licensing requirements from the process.
Local stock decides how fast medicines arrive
Having a pharmacy nearby does not necessarily mean the required medicine will be available.
India has thousands of pharmaceutical salts and a huge number of variations in brands, strengths and manufacturers. Prescription patterns also differ from one neighbourhood to another. Platforms therefore need detailed local data to determine which medicines should be stocked at each location.
Temperature-sensitive medicines add another layer of complexity, requiring appropriate storage and transportation.
Speed must not come before safety
The rapid expansion of online medicine sales has also renewed concerns about regulation, prescription verification and antibiotic misuse. Experts have called for stronger rules governing e-pharmacies, including mandatory registration and pharmacist verification.
The future of medicine delivery may therefore be decided not by the number of riders on the road, but by the strength of the pharmacy network behind the app. For patients, speed matters — but safe and accurate dispensing matters more