Delhi govt suggests measures to improve retail trade

New Delhi [India], September 28 : Delhi government has sent five-point suggestions to the central government's Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) on the National Retail Trade Policy to create a conducive business environment for retail trade in India by simplifying laws and introducing innovative trade practices.
According to a press release issued on Wednesday, Delhi government has sent five-point recommendations to the DPIIT on the National Retail Trade Policy,
Speaking about the GoI's National Retail Trade Policy, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who is also the Finance Minister of Delhi, said, ''Currently, retailers in India are battling for a national policy that can help them with a framework for conducting their businesses in an organized manner and mobilizing the sector.
At the Delhi level, the government under the leadership of CM Arvind Kejriwal has introduced various initiatives for the retail sector to promote ease of doing business and retail trade.''
Sisodia said that the post-pandemic era has seen a dramatic shift in consumer behaviour which has led to many strategic changes in the retail industry. The National Retail Trade Policy has great potential to streamline this industry if modified according to the present requirements of the industry. This policy can be an accelerator for India's economic growth.
He said, ''Recommendations from the Delhi Government on this policy are focused on the holistic development of the retail trade sector in India. If taken into consideration, this will attract more traders to set up their businesses freely and contribute to the economy of the country. Some of these recommendations have already been a success in Delhi.''
These initiatives include Single Window System for businesses, creating more trade avenues through a month-long Delhi Shopping Festival, Dilli Bazaar- an e-commerce platform for businesses of Delhi to showcase Delhi's unique markets on a virtual platform and enhance their presence globally, redevelopment of iconic retail markets and Food hubs of Delhi to generate more employment and trade opportunities.
The DPIIT has proposed to formulate a national retail policy to promote the growth of domestic trade. This policy will streamline the retail trade and promote ease of doing business in the retail trade sector. Its major objective is to identify and address existing infrastructure gaps affecting the retail trade industry along with the promotion of e-commerce all over the country, leveraging retail trade for the socio-economic development of the country and accelerating investment flow to underdeveloped regions across the country.
The Delhi government has suggested the central government to introduce a Single ID system for the traders to simplify the registration process. This will reduce the load of heavy paperwork on traders required for business registration. Responding to the inspection reforms inscribed in National Trade Policy, the Delhi government has suggested the central government to create and adopt a strict monitoring and evaluation framework in the Central Inspection System (CIS).
An entrepreneur requires several licenses and registrations to carry out the business such as a trade license, business operation license, verification certificate of weights and measures, and license for drugs among many others. Rationalizing various laws and reducing the compliance burden will facilitate retail businesses and will help the owners to focus on the growth of their companies. Along with this, the Delhi government recommended that, in order to support traders in conducting their business at ease, the central government should also look into increasing the validity of business licenses and registrations to atleast five years.
Delhi government has suggested to the central government's DPIIT that National Career Service Portal and Employment Exchange portals should be encouraged to integrate with Single Window System.
Further to rationalizing the requirement of new licenses or registrations and renewal under various acts, the regulatory process for the closure of a business should also be introduced to enable hassle-free business closure. Currently, business owners are bound to follow a long list of various steps to be followed for closing down a business.