Flipkart sale complaints forces Government to crack whip on e-commerce

New Delhi: After receiving ‘many complaints’ from traders on Flipkart's massive discount sale, government stated that it will look into the concerns and take a call on whether more clarity is required on e-commerce retail business. Flipkart's 'Big Billion Day' sale on Monday, that offered steep discounts on various products, has raised concerns among small and big traders that such campaigns would badly affect players in the traditional retail market.

"We have received many inputs. Lot of concerns have been expressed. We will look into it," Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told reporters here. When asked whether the government is considering any particular policy for e-commerce retailing, she said the matter would be looked into. "Now there are many complaints. We will study the matter. Whether there is a need for a separate policy or some kind of clarification is needed, we will make it clear soon," Sitharaman, who is also the Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs, said.

In recent times, many e-commerce portals have been coming out with steep discount sales. Flipkart has said that its 'Big Bilion Day' sale saw 1.5 million people shopping at its portal. It also claimed that products worth over Rs 600 crore were sold in just 10 hours under the scheme. Earlier this week, traders body CAIT had demanded the Commerce and Industry Ministry take steps to monitor and regulate online businesses.

The Confederation of All India Traders has also soughta probe into the business model and trade practices of e-commerce companies to find out how they are offering huge discounts during the ongoing festive season. To a query related to Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) announcement, Sitharaman said that it will come "soon". "The new policy would be different from the previous ones. It will focus on lot many things," she said. FTP deals with matters related to exports and imports.