CAIT to launch nationwide protest against online retail cos

Traders body CAIT today said it will launch a nationwide movement from October 31 demanding the government to create a regulator and regulations to govern the online retail market in India.
The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) today also convened a meeting of its national governing council here to discuss the current scenario of the eRetail business in the country and its implications of the offline market.
"The unrealistic prices, unfair competition, unhealthy business practices, predatory pricing have damaged the business of offline market to the tune of 35 per cent in various segments...
"Therefore CAIT will launch a nationwide movement demanding the government to form a regulator and laws and rules to govern the eCommerce business in India," it said in a statement.

The traders body added it had cautioned the Department of Industry Policy and Planning in November last year about the likely ill practices of eRetailers, but the department has taken no cognisance of the issue and no steps have been taken to spell out parameters and modalities of the business.
CAIT Secretary General Praveen Khandelwal said that the nationwide movement is not a protest but a dharna to draw the government's attention towards the seriousness of the issue and its implications on offline retail trade.
"We just met the Commerce Minister last week and she has assured us that the government will seriously look into the matter. We are also taking legal opinion on this issue," he added.

Last week, CAIT threatened to move the Supreme Court and Competition Commission of India (CCI) by October-end if the government failed to act on complaints of alleged predatory pricing and unfair trade practices by eCommerce firms like Amazon, Flipkart and Snapdeal.