Finalized E-Commerce Policy Nearing Release: Consumer Affairs Secretary

New Delhi, Nov 9 (KNN) Following multiple revisions, the definitive e-commerce policy is now prepared and is set to be released “very soon”, Rohit Kumar Singh told Moneycontrol in an exclusive interview.

“I think we have had about 80 meetings with all kinds of players, including consumer organisations, big e-commerce players, small players and startups. And so it's almost ready and is just waiting for final approval,” he said.

The delay, he says, was due to the involvement of two central ministries (The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade under commerce ministry and consumer affairs ministry) in the process.

“They want to promote e-commerce and we want to protect the interests of the consumer. So it may not always be aligned because regulation and promotion are two different things. But thankfully, we are aligned now,” he informed.

The Indian government has been actively developing an e-commerce policy over the last several years. Initially introduced in 2018, a draft of the policy was unveiled in 2019.

This 2019 draft outlined six major focus areas within the e-commerce landscape, encompassing data management, infrastructure enhancement, e-commerce platforms, regulatory considerations, fostering the domestic digital economy, and facilitating e-commerce-driven export promotion.

The e-commerce policy has been pegged to serve as an overarching framework for the sector, ensuring coherence among four governing acts including the FDI policy, the Consumer Protection Act, the Information Technology Act, and the Competition Act.

(KNN Bureau)