The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has written a mail to minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal to intervene and ensure that e-commerce companies like Amazon, Flipkart and others are not allowed to deliver non-essential goods to buyers in states where curfews have been imposed. The trade body says that this is extremely “important to maintain parity between online and offline trade.”
Governments in Maharashtra and Delhi have announced restrictions on movement of goods and people and also imposed curfews during the night and weekend to tackle the rising cases of Covid-19. While there are strict restrictions in place for the general public, both governments have allowed online shopping.
.@CAITIndia has requested @CimGOI Shri @PiyushGoyal to intervene & ensure that e-commerce companies are not allowed to deliver non-essentials in States where #lockdown has been announced. Extremely important to maintain parity between online & offline trade. @ChouhanShivraj pic.twitter.com/iTF90ZSTO4
— Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) (@CAITIndia) April 15, 2021
CAIT represents over eight crore traders across India through 40,000 trade associations. The trade body in its letter to the minister said that e-commerce companies may “pressurise” the governments, through lobby groups, to allow sale and delivery of non-essential goods in places where lockdown and curfews have been imposed.
“The sinister designs of these companies to take advantage of Corona pandemic is a shameful act and shows that they are least bothered for any pandemic or casualties and are more interested in spreading wings of their business on the coffin of the people,” CAIT said in its letter.
“It is shocking that few of the prominent players in e-commerce are trying to dislodge the physical traders from the market by asking permission for selling non essentials through e-commerce in different states and themselves and through their lobby groups have activated to represent them with the government. We take a strong note of it and want to make it very clear to the Government that if e-commerce companies are allowed to sell non-essentials than it will create an uneven level playing field for the traders whose shops will remain shut for compliance of the curfew orders whereas these companies will be allowed to sell goods through e-commerce. It will be a grave injustice to the traders of India and will demotivate the traders,” it added.
