The move to allow 51 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail is not welcome (“51% foreign stake in retail gets CoS nod,” July 23). The clearance is conditional and mandates that foreign retailers dedicate at least 50 per cent of their proposed investments to back-end infrastructure. This will sound the death knell for kirana stores. Also, the committee of secretaries has not considered the issue of foreign retailers sourcing at least 50 per cent of their merchandise from domestic and small and medium units. It is estimated that the total Indian retail sector is worth $590 billion with the unorganised sector accounting for $496 billion. Thus, the government should consider how this move will impact the unorganised sector that employs a lot of people.
P B Srinivasan, Bangalore
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