Industry Clamors for FDI in Retail E-commerce

A roundtable discussion on the topic of allowing FDI in the retail e-commerce, specifically in the B2C segment, was held on 28th May at Hotel Le Meridien, New Delhi. The roundtable saw the presence of representatives from the various e-commerce companies like Snapdeal.com, Yebhi.com, Infibeam.com, apart from Kiran Karnik, Chairman, CII National Committee on Broadband & Telecom, R. Chandrashekhar, President, NASSCOM, Arvind Gupta, Head-IT Cell, BJP and Bhaskar Pramanik, Chairman, Microsoft India.
 The forum highlighted some key issues related to the Indian e-commerce industry, particularly the current policy that disallows FDI in inventory-based B2C e-commerce, thereby creating a regressive environment for the industry to grow. The Indian e-commerce industry is slated to grow to a $70 billion industry by the year 2020 and in order to achieve the target, it is essential to remove the anomalies being faced by the sector currently.
 R. Chandrashekhar, President, NASSCOM, commented, “The focus of the current Government is on manufacturing and overall economic development. We feel that the Government also needs to focus on a policy framework for allowing FDI in B2C e-commerce as presently the market players do face certain restrictions when it comes to raising funds. 100% FDI is allowed in the B2B segment, however Indian financiers are reluctant to invest when it comes to the B2C segment. Hence, investment through the FDI route is the need of the hour”.
 “There are certain unwarranted fears amongst the retail industry that e-commerce will destroy jobs in India. However, it is just the opposite as e-commerce opens up new markets and creates new opportunities for SMEs and individuals across regions where none existed before. Also, since retail e-commerce involves a substantial logistic support part, it results in the creation of new jobs for the skilled,” added Kiran Karnik, Chairman, CII National Committee on Broadband & Telecom.
Arvind Gupta, Head, IT Cell, Bharatiya Janata Party further commented, “Our government’s key focus is on the overall economic development and we are willing to extend our support to the industry in all possible ways. We are planning to roll out GST soon as it will cut down on multiple taxation on the manufacturing industry and benefit industry players. Revisiting the policy on FDI in retail e-commerce is also a part of our agenda and we are willing to consider the recommendations provided by the industry representatives on the same”.