BackGovt rethinks e-commerce policy on stakeholder objections
A draft e-commerce policy leaked to the media in July suggested that the government is considering a national regulator for e-commerce under a proposed legislation
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New Delhi: The government seems to be having second thoughts on coming out with a comprehensive e-commerce legislation, after strong opposition from e-commerce giants such as Amazon and Flipkart.
“Various elements of the policy will go into implementation. It is not some single composite effort. It has various diverse elements. Various elements will get processed and will move forward," commerce secretary Anup Wadhawan said on Tuesday.
When asked about the introduction of a single umbrella legislation, Wadhawan said, “It depends on what is required. If something is required to link everything together, it will be considered."
A draft e-commerce policy leaked to the media in July while it was under discussion suggested that the government is considering a national regulator for e-commerce under a proposed legislation governing all aspects of electronic commerce in the country.
The regulator was proposed to ensure consumer protection and compliance with foreign investment caps in the sector.
Last month, industry secretary Ramesh Abhishek had ruled out allowing foreign direct investment (FDI) in inventory-based e-commerce companies.
The draft e-commerce policy proposed 49% FDI under the inventory model for firms to sell locally-produced goods on their online platforms. At present, 100% FDI is allowed in online stores that follow the marketplace model. No FDI is permitted in firms following the inventory model.
In April, after the first meeting of key stakeholders headed by Union commerce minister Suresh Prabhu, then commerce secretary Rita Teaotia had said the proposed policy will be finalized within six months.
However, on Tuesday, Wadhawan refused to give any timeline.
“We have got recommendations from a wide variety of stakeholders. Now we will process those inputs and the way forward will be identified," he said.
Alok Chaturvedi, director general of foreign trade, said some elements of the proposed e-commerce policy have already been implemented such as increasing the limit of e-commerce exports through courier services to ₹ 5 lakh from the ₹ 25,000 earlier.
“Various elements of e-commerce are governed by various laws and regulations," Wadhawan said.
“The gaps which are there, those gaps will be filled either through a set of rules and regulations or through changes in rules and regulations," said the commerce secretary.
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