Small traders to hit the streets if Centre does not bring ecommerce reforms

Terming the presence of foreign-funded ecommerce companies in ecommerce landscape of India as a scourge for the country's ecommerce and retail trade, small traders from across the country have decided to hit the streets next month.

“The foreign-funded ecommerce companies are openly violating the rules and laws of the country, but no action has been taken by any government department so far, which is very shameful. The proposed rules under Consumer Protection Act have been made but they have not been implemented and have been entangled in discussion and consideration which gives an impression that somewhere some pressure is working on the government,” traders body CAIT said Sunday without naming any foreign firm.

CAIT President B C Bhartia and Secretary General Praveen Khandelwal said that they have urged Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal to enforce the rules proposed in the Consumer Act to foreign companies without giving any escape route to the big ecommerce companies by November 10.

Also read: Proposed ecommerce policy to be robust, balanced, says Goyal

In case the rules are not enforced, the traders of the country will be compelled to launch a nationwide movement.

They said that the big foreign companies are in open violation of ecommerce rules and policy since 2015, evading GST tax, their accounts are full of various types of irregularities and many times a number of complaints are being filed but it is of no avail.

“It is surprising that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for Aatmanirbhar Bharat and repeated appeals to empower small businessmen has not being paid any attention by any department of the government and the traders of the country are falling into the pit of plight, and we fail to understand why no attention is paid to this open daylight loot,’ they said in a resolution passed by traders body on Sunday.

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