The central government on Sunday issued a revised order and puts a ban on the supply of non-essential items by E-commerce firms. So none of the e-commerce firms can sell non-essential items from April 20.
“It has been clarified by the Ministry of Home Affairs that supply of non-essential goods by e-commerce companies will remain prohibited during the lockdown,” Ministry of information and broadcasting said in a press statement.
The previous order issued on April 15 said that the transportation of goods will be permitted without any distinction of essential or non-essential. So, most e-commerce stores already made preparation to start ship orders from April 20. Flipkart went a step ahead and opened orders of mobile phones from April 18.
The reason to reverse the order isn’t clear. It seems this was done after offline retail bodies objected to the decision. E-commerce retailers can still sell essential items until the end of lockdown on May 3.
The lockdown was first announced on March 24 for 21 days. It was then extended until May 3. So only essential items are on sale. People are demanding a few more items to be added to the essential list. Opening of e-commerce operationss was a good move but it still expose millions to the risk. A delivery boy in Delhi tested positive for COVID-19 and Delhi administration has put 72 families under quarantine. So, e-commerce operation must be opened only after making several precautionary measures.
