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The Competition Commission of India (CCI) will soon come out with a set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for stakeholders to provide clarity on diverse issues about the competition law, its Chairman, Ashok Kumar Gupta, has said.
The FAQ will be published in regional languages also, Gupta said at a national conference on competition law, organised by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) as part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.
Digital markets unit
CCI also plans to set up a dedicated digital markets unit as a centre of expertise for digital markets.
“In the interconnected and globalised world, it is imperative that we remain alive to developments in different jurisdictions, particularly in new age markets. CCI is keeping a close eye to ascertain their relevance and feasibility in the Indian markets”, Gupta said.
As India emerges as one of the biggest and fastest growing digital consumer bases, market distortions need to be corrected promptly, he added.
At the same time, while addressing competition in technology markets, one must give due regard to aspects of innovation and efficiency, according to Gupta.
CCI has to strategise and retool itself to provide the necessary institutional support for a well functioning market economy.
“We have taken small steps. The role of CCI is expected to increase substantially and we have to do everything possible to meet the challenge,” he added.
Mergers & acquisitions
Gupta also said CCI is committed to ensuring that companies benefit from mergers & acquisitions (M&As) where they do not undermine the functioning of markets.
“We are mindful that M&As are crucial instruments for investment flows, creating economic synergies and contributing to the process of industrial development. CCI acts as a facilitator in this process through expeditious assessment of combination filing. The average time for approval of combination cases has come down to 17 working days,” he said.
Of 900 combinations reviewed so far, remedies have been ordered in only 22 cases — enquiry demonstrated harm to competition. “We firmly believe our balanced approach to regulation has resulted in a pro-market regulatory system that facilitates synergistic transactions and combinations that have anti-competitive potential alone,” he added.
Gupta also said CCI is adapting its cartel detection toolkit as enterprises are now looking for novel ways to collude. “Forensic tools , data analytics, dawn raids are increasingly becoming useful methods in the investigation process. We are also incentivising the self-reporting process through our leniency programmes,” he added.
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