In a move to standardise the process of onboarding retailers on
e-marketplaces, and supply and delivery of products through online channels, India will soon set protocols for digital commerce.
As reported on November 26, 2020, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) plans to develop an Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) to set protocols for cataloguing, vendor discovery, and price discovery. In this direction an 11-member committee comprising officials from various ministries and industry representatives has been set up and a pilot project is about to start.
The open platform will serve the national priorities and socio-economic objectives and will provide easy access to everyone, including small traders and producers, and help them grow their business.
The DPIIT has set-up a steering committee to formulate implement, and provide policy oversight on the new initiative called the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC). The ONDC is an e-commerce business platform which has been developed with the backing of the government. The ONDC committee would initially build consensus and, once the project gets underway, ensure that it continues to meet the set vision, goals, and objectives.
The steering committee is headed by a senior DPIIT official. It will also have as its members officials from the Ministry of Electronics and IT, Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), Niti Aayog, Government e-Marketplace, National Payments Corporation of India, and National Securities Depository Limited. Representatives of the Confederation of All India Traders as well as Retailers Association of India too will be members of the committee. The DPIIT has assigned the work for carrying out the pilot for ONDC to the Quality Council of India (QCI).
The Government of India has taken this initiative mainly to redefine the e-commerce landscape in the wake of a large number of complaints of malpractices by existing e-commerce companies. The ONDC would be a unique and innovative e-commerce business platform to help and guide the small businesses. It would provide ample opportunities to adopt and accept the online market as an additional business avenue for small businesses.
The department is currently framing the e-commerce policy, a set of rules aimed at streamlining and regulating the digital business ecosystem. The DPIIT with the help of its steering committee ONDC would soon set up protocols and standards to onboard retailers on online marketplaces and the entire process of supply to delivery. According to the committee, these will be open standards. The ONDC is expected to provide the infrastructure for setting up desi e-commerce platform on the lines of Amazon, Flipkart, and others. It is expected that this effort would put an end to e-commerce malpractices, including predatory pricing, deep discounts, and exclusive sales, diverting large amounts of business away from the retailers.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry set up the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) in its original form in 1995. Reconstituted in 2000, it was merged with the Department of Industrial Development. It was called Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), but from January 2019, it was renamed as DPIIT. DPIIT works under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The main responsibility of DPIIT is to formulate and implement promotional and developmental measures for the growth of the industrial sector.