Union commerce and industry minister, Nirmala Sitharaman discussed the ecommerce policy framework with state industry ministers at a meeting in New Delhi yesterday and explored the possibility of allowing foreign direct investments in consumer ecommerce, officials said.
“A whole gamut of issues on ecommerce was discussed with the states covering taxation, FDI policy framework and definition of ecommerce. In fact, based on the discussions the very nature of the policy in ecommerce may be changed,” an official familiar with the agenda said. The final decision will be taken by the center.
At the meeting, the commerce department for the first time presented international trade data for states, urging them to put in place a trade policy that encourages exports and jobs creation. The government has been under intense pressure from various countries to liberalise foreign direct investment in the ecommerce sector. The current policy allows 100 per cent FDI in business-to-business (B2B) ecommerce but business-to-consumer (B2C) is closed to foreign investment.
