E-commerce rule book in letter and spirit

The coming weeks should give us an idea on how e-commerce firms would do business in India if new rules are to be followed, writes Nivedita Mookerji

The proposed e-commerce rule book issued recently by the ministry of consumer affairs does not mention foreign companies or foreign direct investment (FDI) at any place, unlike most other government guidelines for the sector so far. That is a heartening development since the latest proposals could be finetuned as e-commerce policy. At the same time, because these draft guidelines have the potential to become a cornerstone for online retail businesses —small and big, foreign and domestic, single and multi-brand, inventory-led and marketplace formats — policy-making must be non-preferential and above board. In the current form, the proposed guidelines need plenty