Regulatory authority for the retail sector mooted

Mumbai, July 11 (UNI) Organisations agitating against the mushrooming organised retail sector in Maharshtra have sought the government to set up a regulatory authority on the lines of the Monopoly and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission for the retail sector.

The Vyapar Rozgar Bachao Samiti (VRBC), an umbrella platform of various organisations spearheading an agitation against organised retail trade in Maharashtra, which held a state-level consultation in Navi Mumbai yesterday said such a regulatory authority could deal with complaints of 'predatory' pricing and unfair trade practices adopted by the corporate sector to pull customers.

The VRBC decided to submit a charter of demands with more than one lakh signatures of stakeholders to Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh during the monsoon session of the state legislature begining here on July 16.

It has also decided to organise a APMC market Bandh for one day as a symbol of the traders and workers protest during the monsoon session of the state legislature. The meet also demanded immediate curbs not only on the opening of multinational stores such as Wallmart and Metro but also national corporates like Reliance , Subhiksha, More and others.

''We shall also formulate a draft retail policy based on various suggestions put forward by our members to plug loopholes in the existing licensing system for retail outlets and permission for FDI in the retail sector with special emphasis on the wholesale cash and carry mode,'' Advocate Vinod Shetty of India FDI Watch told UNI here today.

The meet was attended by various organisations, including Federation Of Associations of Maharashtra(FAM), Transport and General Mathadi Kamgar Union, C.I.T.U, Navi Mumbai Labour Union, Unorganised Workers Panchayat and Vegetable Traders Association.

UNI CP VK AG1858