Walmartowned Flipkart will sell groceries online in more Indian cities, as it seeks to compete better with Amazon and Reliance in an ecommerce market that has grown rapidly during the COVID19 pandemic.

Flipkart has already expanded online grocery sales to more than 50 Indian cities and intends to reach over 70 locations in the next six months, the company said in a statement on Tuesday.

The Bengalurubased firm said its grocery service had grown exponentially in the past year when many Indians began buying essential supplies online due to the health crisis.

Grocery continues to be one of the fastestgrowing categories, said Manish Kumar, senior vice president at Flipkart, adding that the company had seen increased demand for the service from smaller cities in 2020.

Reliance Industriesowned JioMart last year became the latest big entrant to Indias egrocery market, a sector that also includes Amazon.com Inc, BigBasket and several smaller players. Indian conglomerate Tata is reported to be buying a majority stake in Alibababacked BigBasket.

Reliance, backed by Indias richest man, Mukesh Ambani, raised over 20 billion last year from global investors including Facebook and Alphabets Google for its digital arm, which is expected to support JioMart.

Indias broader retail industry is also witnessing a highstakes legal battle between Reliance and Jeff Bezosled Amazon on the Future Groups 3.4 billion sale of its retail assets to Reliance, which Futures partner Amazon is…