JOIN USCommerce Secretary Rita Teaotia on Friday chaired the first meeting of the task force set up to recommend the framework for a national policy on ecommerce here and deliberated upon issues such as cross-border data flows, taxation, trade facilitation and logistics, consumer confidence, IPR and future tech, FDI and competition.
The government had in April begun the exercise to frame a national policy on ecommerce, with a think-tank constituted on the issue under the chairmanship of Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu. It was decided to set up a task force in the first meeting of the think tank, on the framework for national policy on ecommerce.
The task force was further divided into nine sub-groups for preparing recommendations for the national policy on ecommerce.
“The suggestions emerging from the task force meeting held today (Friday) will be submitted to the think tank for consideration,” an official statement said.
The sub-groups saw participation from various ministries and departments, high-level representatives from the industry bodies, ecommerce companies, telecommunication and IT companies and independent experts.
Senior officers from the ministries of MSME, consumer affairs, electronics and information technology, corporate affairs and department of telecommunications, Competition Commission of India and DGFT were present on Friday’s meeting, the statement said.
A detailed national policy on the sector will help India in articulating its stand on ecommerce at the WTO. Several developed economies, including the US, are keen on an agreement in the WTO on the ecommerce sector. India is participating in the ongoing technical negotiations on the issues in the WTO, but the subject is not on the formal negotiating table as the sector is at nascent stage in the country and developing countries want time to prepare themselves.