Government to seek approval of Election Commission to launch FDI in online retail

THE government has decided to allow Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in online retail. It will seek the approval of the Election Commission to ensure that the government will not be violating the model code of conduct as the process had been initiated much before the election dates were announced. It is likely that foreign companies will be allowed to own 100% of the Indian entity. Currently, global B2C e-commerce firms like Amazon and eBay operate in India as online marketplaces. In this model, these companies do not own any inventory and do not sell any of their own merchandise to Indian shoppers. They offer products from third-party sellers.