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The All India Forward Bloc, an important constituent
in the ruling Left combine of West Bengal, has warned
of "bloodshed" if Reliance enters agri-products
retail business in the state.
"We will not allow the entry with the help of
police, of Reliance in the agri-retail business in this
state. There will be bloodshed if any attempt is made
(in this regard by the Left Front government),"
senior Forward Bloc leader Naren Chatterjee told a rally
of the party's labour body, Trade Union Co-ordination
Centre here.
The threat comes in the wake of ransacking of a Reliance
'Fresh' store by party workers on 18th August, 2007.
In a related development, Trinamul Congress activists,
on 19th August, 2007, also vandalised another Reliance
'Fresh' store under construction. Trinamul Congress,
led by Mamta Benerjee, is the main opposition party
in West Bengal.
In a setback to the big companies trying to bring
big-time retailing to India, Mayawati, the chief minister
of India's most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, had ordered
the closure of supermarkets run by Reliance Retail last
Thursday due to protests from mom and pop type small
shopkeepers, and activists
The reaction from the trade associations have been
divers, as expected. Trade and industry associations
representing interests of big businesses in the country,
like the CII, Assocham, and RAI, have criticised the
U.P. government's recent decision to close down stand
alone modern retail superstores run among others by
Reliance and RPG (Spencer's) and have requested the
Chief Minister to review the same, trade bodies representing
the interests of small traders, farmers, consumers and
trade unions, like the Confederation of All-India Traders
(CAIT) and Vyapar Rozgar Bachao Aandolan (VRBA), have
welcomed the government's move and applauded Chief Minister
Mayawati for her bold decision to safeguard livelihoods
of lakhs of small retailers and traders. These traders
were feeling helpless in front of big corporate houses,
they said.
Retailers Association of India, a trade body representing
interests of modern retail sector in India, has issued
a statement in which it has urged concerned governments
to review their decisions in the interest of employment
potential and growth potential of modern retail in the
economy of the country.
The Uttar Pradesh government's decision on shutting
down all the major retail shops will have adverse impact
on the pace of inclusive growth of India, said the Confederation
of Indian Industry (CII) on Friday.
Modern large-format retail, efficiently connects the
producers and the consumers and is beneficial to both
in the long run. In India there is a huge wastage of
fresh fruits and vegetables, between 24% and 40% of
the total produce.
In this scenario, the large-format retail provide the
all important infrastructure to carry the farm produce
to the consumers with lower wastage. In this process
the farmers get better returns and the consumer better
quality and price, it said.
The UP government's move will allegedly be detrimental
on several grounds - lower returns for farmers, higher
prices for consumers, reduced job opportunities and
erode investor confidence.
In what may be called as double whammy for organised
retail sector in India, Mayawati, has also ordered roll
back of the new farm policy announced a fortnight or
so back. The new farm policy, if it had been implemented
would have brought about cheer on the faces of marginal
farmers, who for ages have been left out of the main
stream.
Under the new policy, farmers would have come out of
the clutches of middlemen, who beside grabbing fat commissions,
prohibit investments in technologies and supply chain.
Big retailers, under the new policy, could have brought
in investments and technologies and get direct access
to farm output without going through the middlemen.
Source: www.Indiaretailbiz.com
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