Modi’s Manufacturing Ambitions Clash With a Surging Gig Economy

Arivudainamba Lokesh is one of thousands of delivery drivers zipping through traffic for India’s booming quick-commerce sector. He dreams of owning a business selling saffron — often called “red gold” for being one of the most lucrative crops in the world — but he needs money to get started. After earning a commerce degree, he took a job at a cotton mill, sweating through long shifts in stifling heat. Four months in, he still hadn’t saved anything.

So Lokesh swapped the factory floor for the city streets of Tiruchirappalli, delivering groceries on his motorbike. Now he sets aside about 10,000 ...