Allowing e-commerce companies to deliver non-essential goods is unjust to traders: CAIT Secretary General

The Centre allowing e-commerce companies to deliver non-essential goods from April 20, while the lockdown is still in force, is unjust and will discourage the more than 40 lakh traders dealing in essential commodities in the country who catered to the nation during the lockdown phase, according to Praveen Khandelwal, Secretary-General of the Confederation of All India Traders.

The Centre allowing e-commerce compes to deliver non-essential goods from April 20, while the lockdown is still in force, is unjust and will discourage the more than 40 lakh traders dealing in essential commodities in the country who catered to the nation during the lockdown phase, according to Praveen Khandelwal, Secretary-General of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT).

"More than 40 lakh traders are supplying essential goods across India ever since the lockdown came into effect. Sidelining and ignoring them, the e-commerce compes have been allowed to deliver non-essential goods from April 20 onwards. It is a one-sided and unjust decision and against the larger interest of the traders and will create an imbalance in the country. Today, we have written a letter to PM Modi, asking him to intervene in the matter and reconsider the decision," Khandelwal told here.

"When the lockdown was announced, these e-commerce compes had suspended their operations. We want to know today what is the necessity for which they have been given permission. We have no objection if they are given permission to provide essential services but why the non-essential goods," he added.

He also said that People's Bank of China (PBOC) raising its stake in the HDFC Bank was a bad move for India.

"This is alarming, I do not know why are we allowing China to invest in one of our strongest banks. So in a way, China always tries to capture the Indian economy, earlier it was through flooding the markets with its goods and now it is trying to interfere in our banking sector," Khandelwal said.

Earlier today, Congress spokesperson Ajay Maken too had questioned the move by the Centre allowing delivery of non-essential goods and had demanded a level-playing field for retailers.

"While their shops are locked down for the last one month, their main competitors are open and have been allowed to sell non-essential items online. This is an injustice to retailers and the government should not allow this," Maken said on Twitter.

( With inputs from ANI )