Amazon launches first fulfilment, sort centre in Varanasi ahead of festive season

Amazon has launched its first fulfilment centre and sort centre in Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi ahead of the festive season, the company said in a statement on Tuesday, September 22.

The new fulfilment centre has a storage capacity of one lakh cubic feet, while the sort centre spans 13,000 square feet. Amazon said the facilities, operated by logistics industry partner firms, will speed up deliveries to customers in Varanasi and nearby areas and create hundreds of local jobs.

With the expansion, Amazon now operates two fulfilment centres, five sort centres and 170 last-mile delivery stations across Uttar Pradesh. The company said the Varanasi facility is part of a broader nationwide expansion involving 20 new fulfilment centres, six sort centres and 150 last-mile delivery stations, which has increased its total storage capacity by 50 per cent to 64 million cubic feet and sorting space by 25 per cent to three million square feet.

"This year, we are investing more than Rs 2,800 crore in strengthening our operations network, improving technology and the safety, health and financial well-being of our employees," said Abhinav Singh, Amazon's Operations Vice President for India, APAC, Middle East, Turkiye and Africa. The company said the investment has enabled same-day delivery in 30 per cent more cities compared with last year.

Amazon also said it has announced 1.6 lakh seasonal jobs across 400 cities for the festive season, including several tier-2 and tier-3 cities, and that its quick-commerce service, Amazon Now, is currently available through more than 750 stores across over 55 cities, offering deliveries within minutes.