Union Minister for Communications and Information Technology (IT) Ravi Shankar Prasad, at an ASSOCHAM event, has predicted a vast opportunity for e-commerce in India, which can have a couple of players like Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba if the Government is successful in the rollout of its Digital India project.
“As Flipkart is growing so big, as we see the success of Alibaba and as we see the aspirational India evolving with great enthusiasm particularly in rural areas, I see a vast opportunity for e-commerce,” said Prasad while inaugurating the 10th national Summit on “E-governance & Digital India: Minimum Government, Maximum Governance”, organized by the Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry of India.
“I see almost an explosion of various kind of availability of services through e-commerce, particularly you will have warehouses,” said Union IT and Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad.
“We can have a couple of Alibaba in the coming future if we are able to roll out this programme very well,” added the Union IT and Telecom Minister.
He further informed that the Digital India programme has been conceived recognizing India’s great deficit in terms of broadband and the core element of this programme is digital infrastructure as a utility to every citizen, governance and service on demand and digital empowerment of citizens.
Highlighting the poor rural telecom penetration of 44 per cent, the Minister said, “Rural India needs more coverage of 44 per cent plus, we need to bridge that gap.”
