The logistics giant has targeted over 5,000 deliveries with DTDC Vallam Express in the coming year amid plans to scale up the service.

The logistics giant has targeted over 5,000 deliveries with DTDC Vallam Express in the coming year amid plans to scale up the service.

The logistics giant has targeted over 5,000 deliveries with DTDC Vallam Express in the coming year amid plans to scale up the service.

Indian logistics giant DTDC Express Ltd has launched a waterway-based postal service to speed up last-mile postal deliveries to Kerala's water-bound communities.

Launched on Monday, the DTDC Vallam Express aims to bring doorstep postal services to places where the term 'last-mile' means parcels stopping at the nearest accessible place by road.

This usually meant that customers living across Kerala's backwaters had to travel by boat to collect their parcels from the nearest courier collection point.

The name of the service, which translates to 'water express', is also said to be inspired by the traditional snake boats used in Kerala's Vallamkali (boat race).

The new service integrates its own delivery network with Kerala's oarsmen familiar with operating the inland waterways, which the company notes will help with accuracy and sustaining local livelihoods.

Reminiscent of the Assam Despatch service during colonial times—a daily mail and passenger service that once plied from Kolkata up the Brahmaputra River to Dibrugarh—the Vallam Express aims to capitalise on the festive season rush, as its launch comes just before Onam is celebrated across the state later this month.

The service was initially rolled out in Kuttanad, a sub-district of Alappuzha comprising 14 villages and serving a population of approximately 2 lakh people.

It is yet to be seen how the DTDC Vallam Express performs once the festive season rush slows down, which is expected to play a key role in its aim to become a long-term water-based delivery service.

More specifically, the company has targeted over 5,000 deliveries in the coming year amid plans to scale up the service.

"By reimagining the last mile through a region-specific delivery model, we continue to strengthen our position as a customer-first logistics brand," said Abhishek Chakraborty, CEO, DTDC Express Ltd, about the launch.

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