By Kaushik Pandya, President, Federation of All India IT Association (FAIITA).
We, as FAIITA, congratulate on the proactive and much-required actions to control COVID-19 pandemic in India. We are an umbrella body of IT associations across India highly appreciate the actions taken by the Government of India. India is the world leader to show the way forward in handling COVID-19 situation in coming days. Full credit for the same goes to our visionary prime minister Narendra Modi and his entire team at GOI.
We would like to draw your attention to a very important point in the concern with the MHA guidelines issued on the 15th of April 2020. The guidelines have allowed e-commerce companies by clause no 13(i) to operate with the online delivery model only for essential items. However, it is observed by the trade and industry that etailers have started gearing up themselves from 21st April onwards to staring delivery of all types of goods including specifically IT and Communication equipment like Laptops, Desktops, Mobiles and other accessories.
If this is allowed, the IT fraternity across India will face a grave situation with a further imbalance in the level playing field and also will raise many unnecessary conflicts and issues. The Brick and Mortar showrooms of IT and Telecommunication, the Tier 2 and Tier 3 partners of IT community, who are carrying stocks with them will not be able to deliver the goods to the much-needed customers due to the lockdown. On the other hand, the etailers or Online shops will be in a position to deliver the non-essential goods under the shadow of an opening provided to them by the government only for essential items for the needy citizens of India under lockdown. As you are very well aware that the B&M shops and channel community is the backbone of IT hardware fraternity, and, if kind of disadvantage taken by etailers or online shops would be a deadly blow on the spine of the IT trade.
Another important place is, etailers and Online shops are otherwise also online marketplaces, where the supply is to made by the local vendors who have participated in these marketplaces. If these local vendors are not allowed to operate, how will the supply take place for etailers and online shops?
Small IT traders, Brick & Mortar showrooms and T2 & T3 partners have otherwise also not done any sort of business during March as well as in April. Now, if these etailers and Online Shops are given a window to operate from 21st April onwards, they will drain the entire business for May from B&M showrooms and IT channel. This will create an unimaginable situation for B & M and IT channel with no business on hand and yet to meet the challenge of paying salary and all the fixed expenses.
Note that we are a community of about 50,000 partners across India, giving direct and indirect sustainability to about 2.5 million people. If such preferences are given to etailers and online platforms, it will lead the entire community to starve.
We, as FAIITA, urge you to take immediate intervening action on the same and amend the guidelines that etailers or online shops can do the delivery of only essential goods during the lockdown period. We also request you to amend the guidelines that local vendors operating from Orange and Green Zone shall be allowed to carry out business through their on-line websites/platforms.