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In a bid to appease the trading community that is unhappy with the presence of foreign players in single-brand retail and e-commerce, the government has notified setting up of a ‘National Traders Welfare Board’ to identify policy measures, including offering social security benefits and ensuring access to funds, for traders and their employees.
The board will be headed by a senior official from the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) and include members of retailers’ associations and experts in the field, a government official said.
The Central government will nominate the chairman and up to 15 members to the Board, as per the notification of the DPIIT.
“The main objectives of the board include suggesting simplifications of rules, reducing compliance burden on traders, improving access to funds and making recommendations on social security benefits like insurance, pension and healthcare for both traders and their employees,” the official added.
While traders are optimistic about the board providing a stable link between the trading community and the government, they underline the need for it to have teeth.
“The traders’ welfare board should not just be a decorative body. It needs to be adequately empowered to deal with issues in a holistic manner. It should have some control over respective departments so that decisions are taken,” said Praveen Khandelwal, National Secretary General, Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT).
National survey
According to Khandelwal, one of the first things that the board should do once it is constituted is to conduct a national survey of the trading community. “There has never been a survey of traders. The government should find out what is the actual size of the community and what are the core issues before it starts addressing them,” he said.
There are more than six crore trading enterprises across the country and domestic trade contributes around 15 per cent of India’s GDP, according to government figures.
It is estimated that the livelihood of about 25 crore people is linked to domestic trade, which is growing at about 15 per cent every year.
The Labour Ministry recently notified a pension scheme for retailers and traders with beneficiaries eligible for a monthly pension of ₹3,000 after the age of 60 at a small monthly contribution.
The scheme is expected to benefit over three crore self-employed workers in the country.
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