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AMAZON IS IN THE EYE OF A STORM IN INDIA. READ TO KNOW WHY.
USING AMAZON EFFIGIES FOR HOLI DAHAN THIS YEAR, THEY'RE PLANNING PROTESTS WITH A STRONG MESSAGE!
Amazon is in the news in India. This Holi Dahan, the traders in India plan to send out a strong message to the online e-commerce platform amazon. Through burning effigies, raising slogans and holding protest marches. Why are they angry ?
India Input Team
March 15th, 2022. Its evening time at Agrasen Bhavan, in west Nagpur. Prominent persons from trading communities join the office bearers of Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) led by Balkrishna Bhartia, the national president CAIT, in a protest. The effigy, pasted ‘amazon’ all over it, is lit and is soon engulfed in flames. The anger against the leading online e-commerce platform is palpable. In the next two days, similar protests are planned across the nation.
Why the anger?
‘Amazon is indulging in immoral, illegal and unethical ways of business. In the Pulwama blast incident, the Nitrate that was used had been procured through Amazon. In Madhya Pradesh’s Bhind, the police superintendent registered a case against amazon, for selling narcotics. Though the case has been registered, yet, no action has been taken. Prohibited drugs are easily made available by amazon. How can they make explosive material and weapons available? Why this utter disregard for the local laws and safety concerns?’ Shri Bhartia responds to the questions put by India Input.
He further ads, ‘Moreover, it is also working against the competition law by offering deep discounts and indulging in predictive pricing. Competition Commission of India (CCI) has levied a monetary penalty of 202 crore rupees on Amazon. The penalty is for allegedly not being upfront about the actual scope and purpose of the deal about a Future group entity. The CCI has kept the Amazon group’s 2019 purchase of 49 per cent stake in the Future group entity in abeyance. There was no govt policy on e commerce business, till now. The Government of India has issued a policy draft calling for objections. These have been filed by many before the due date. The final policy is yet to be released. Who is lobbying to withhold it? Why this disregard for the Indian laws ?’
White Paper on e Commerce by CAIT
Shri Bhartia also mentions the white paper recently released by CAIT on the various aspects of the e Commerce in India. He says, ‘The online giants are giving products first to online markets. Why this push for creating monopolies?’
He points out, ‘We have a competition law of the land. That clearly rules against monopolizing. It says, there should not be any discrimination or any upper hand. Let there be a level playing field for all. But, the e-commerce giant is working against this spirit. As regards our mobile markets, why are the new models released first on online platforms?’
‘In India the retail shops have more than eighty per cent market share. Since decades and even before, they have been catering traditionally to customers at every lane, bye lane and gully. In the nooks and corners of India. Why discriminate against them? Let the models be released simultaneously. Let the models be made available to the Indian traders also, at the same time. We are not saying ‘only’ we are saying ‘also’. This is the spirit of competition on a level playing field. These are the times when OTT gets first to release a film. The theaters then follow.. What kind of a just model is this? Why create such a monopoly?’ he asks.
India stands to gain
India Input: There is a war happening and the world is expecting inflation. Indian exports, on the other hand, have made a sharp recovery.. The overall exports have shot up by 36 per cent. Your take on the positive side for India.
Shri Bhartia: ‘ We are hopeful. See, the local demand in India is maintained. Every nation is interested in its own growth. So it will collectively boost India. India has not imposed sanctions on anyone. India stands to gain. We harbor best wishes for the world. Defence is open to the private sector. It will naturally get benefitted. India is the world’s biggest consumer market. We are a consumption based country with a huge market with a consumption based economy. The world has no option but to turn towards the Indian market. We are open to the world. And our market has the bargaining capacity.’
India Input: In an open economy, concessions can be expected globally..
Shri Bhartia: ‘CAIT has come out with a white paper on all these aspects. India is a Socialist Democratic Republic. It is guaranteed in the preamble of our constitution. Multinationals are driven by the idea of an economy pushing towards capitalism. That is where we strongly differ with them. That is why we are protesting. We plan to hold countrywide agitation, protesting by burning effigy and handing over a memorandum to the authorities.’
India Input: Don’t the Indian shopkeepers need to respond to the online era?
Shri Bhartia: ‘We are on it. The youths today are shopping as per convenience. They prefer buying material while sitting in their place..in the house or in the office. Local offline traditional shopkeepers will have to go ‘Phygital’.. physical and digital coined together..to get an edge leveraging their physical presence and digital presence through technology. This is bound to enhance the customer experience in times to come.’
Official website: https://cait.in/
(Images: Team CAIT)
