A traders association called for a regulator like TRAI for e-commerce, and a domestic e-commerce giant called for tighter regulations for foreign marketplace platforms at a virtual meeting held on January 18 by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal trade (DPIIT) to discuss the proposed e-commerce policy. The meeting was attended by various stakeholders, including domestic and foreign e-commerce companies, associations representing traders and retailers, and associations related to the MSME sector. The government proposed amendments to the E-Commerce Rules last June in response to repeated antitrust complaints against e-commerce giants Amazon and Flipkart, but it appears that the government is yet to finalise the proposed rules and is still reviewing and soliciting feedback from concerned stakeholders. What do retailers and traders want? Speaking on behalf of retailers and traders, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) asked for the following, according to a press release: Regulator like TRAI: CAIT asked for a regulator like the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) for the e-commerce sector Robust and unambiguous policy: The traders' body also called for a "robust and unambiguous" e-commerce policy in light of the fact that provisions of Press Note 2 are repeatedly violated by foreign e-commerce platforms. "The e-commerce policy should have clear stipulations about transparent operations of e-commerce platforms, easy accessibility and adequate grievance redressal system, non-discriminatory access of marketplace platforms to all stakeholders and value chain, avoidance of conflict of interest between marketplace platforms, sellers and various service providers on the platform," CAIT submitted.…
