'Ten states likely to establish retail policies'

26 Nov '15

2 min read

The Retail Association of India's (RAI) appeal to State governments to come up with policy on retail may soon show results, according to a newspaper report.

Kumar Rajagopalan, CEO of RAI, told reporters that at least nine or ten states have shown interest to work out a retail policy. He was speaking on the sidelines of the Chennai Retail Summit – 2015.

He said that the retail sector contributes around 15 per cent of the country's GDP, but has not been considered as industry, and systems are not in place to support the sector's growth.

He said that the Maharashtra government has come out with a draft policy, while Andhra Pradesh, Telengana and Karnataka are contemplating a retail policy. When the Goods and Service Tax regime comes into existence, the retail sector would be more important considering those would be the points where the highest amount of tax collected and policy related to the sector would help the particular states to work better, he added. The RAI has also discussed the issue with the governments of Delhi, Madhya Pradesh and Kerala.

The Association says a policy is required to put systems for the retailers to operate all the days in a year. It has also sought amendments in the labour regulations to enable the retailers to work more days and to recognise part time labourers. It also said that similar to the exemptions given for IT industry to employ women workers without time restrictions, the retailers should be allowed to employ women workers if the retail establishment takes responsibility about the safety and security of these workers.

Rajagopalan also pushed for ease of doing business, pointing out that currently, retailers have to procure at least 50 licenses from various government departments to start business. He said the entire procedure must be brought under a single window clearance system. (SH)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India

More Textiles News - India...