The Indian government is looking to establish a non-profit company led by the private sector to oversee the implementation of the Open Network for Digital Commerce, according to a press release by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by Piyush Goyal, a cabinet minister who has ministries like Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs & Food & Public Distribution, and Textiles in his portfolio. The government explained that it is removing the drive for profit maximisation from the equation by keeping the structure of the company as non-profit. The details of how people will be inducted or how the entity will operate are yet to be disclosed. The government revealed that a team of experts has been put in place by the Quality Council of India to ensure the execution of the project and that several small and medium enterprises have signed on as volunteers to complement the ONDC team. "An ONDC gateway has also been established. About 20 entities covering all network components are at various stages of on-boarding. DPIIT has approved a budget of approximately Rs 10 crores for initial work on the project," read the statement by DPIIT. ONDC is supposed to be the government's response to the growing influence of marketplaces like Amazon and Flipkart which operate as walled gardens. It may have a sweeping effect on the e-commerce landscape if the impact of UPI (Unified Payments Interface) is any indicator. What will be the role…
