The Economic Survey, tabled in Parliament by finance minister Arun Jaitley, estimates India's e-commerce market to be worth $33 billion this fiscal year which is a 19% growth over 2016-17. The central government is trying to further push the sector through initiatives such as Startup India, the survey noted. India’s IT and business process management (IT-BPM) sector has grown to $140 Bn, registering a growth of 8% over 2016-17. However, IT-related export percentage, compared to 2006, has come down by 1%, from 68% to 67%. The overall IT-BPM export has grown by 7.6% to $116 Bn from the earlier $108 Bn, said the report quoting NASSCOM. “To further promote this sector, many initiatives have been taken, which include the establishment of BPO Promotion and Common Services Centres to help create digital inclusion and equitable growth and provide employment to 1.45 lakh persons, mostly in the small towns; setting up a separate Northeast BPO promotion Scheme with 5000 seats and having employment potential of 15000 persons; preparing the draft Open Data Protection Policy law; besides long-term initiatives like Digital India, Make in India, Smart Cities, e-Governance, push for digital talent through Skill India, drive towards a cashless economy and efforts to kindle innovation through Start-up India,” the survey said. The survey also took stock of legislative reforms being pursued in the labour sector for generating employment opportunities for people who are largely engaged in the informal economy. "The government has undertaken numerous technology-enabled transformative initiatives such as Shram Suvidha Portal, Ease of…
