NEW HURDLES FOR BIG E-TAIL

Unlike brick-and-mortar businesses that either perished or struggled to survive during this pandemic, e-commerce has flourished. The reasons are not hard to see: for essential goods, including groceries and fresh foods, and much else, e-tailers have became the default option for a large urban middle class. Their success, however, has come at a cost to traditional businesses in these areas, who will take heart from the new set of norms the Centre has proposed to ostensibly create a more “level playing field”. On June 21, the ministry of consumer affairs announced changes in the Consumer Protection (E-commerce) Rules, 2020 and sought comments and suggestions from the public by July 6. According to the proposal, e-commerce companies will not be allowed to hold ‘flash sales’ in India. These refer to an online sale at greatly reduced