Amazon India has made it mandatory for sellers to mention the “country of origin” of each of the products listed by them on the ecommerce platform, failing which they may even be removed from the site.
The move comes a few days after ecommerce companies, including Amazon and archrival Flipkart, held multiple meetings over the labelling with the government as anti-China sentiments run high in the country.
"Starting from July 21, 2020, we are introducing 'country of origin' as a mandatory attribute in addition to a few optional attributes in our category listing templates in accordance with the Legal Metrology Act, 2009. You will be required to provide information for 'country of origin' mandatorily for all your new and existing listings," Amazon said in an email to the sellers. Moneycontrol has seen a copy of the email.
Failure to provide information on the “country of origin” by August 10 could lead to “enforcement action including suppression of your listing", the ecommerce giant said. Amazon did not immediately respond to an email seeking its comments.
The government has already mandated its online marketplace, GeM, to enter the country of origin while registering new products.
In June, 20 Indian soldiers were killed in a clash with Chinese troops in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley along the Line of Actual Control, worsening the already strained ties between the two neighbours.
The bloodiest clash between the two sides in 45 years only made calls for the boycott of Chinese goods grow louder. China is India’s biggest trading partner, with trade heavily skewed in its favour.
The government has not mentioned any protocol for Chinese products listed on ecommerce sites but there has been a push for local products.
"The idea is just to ensure that the consumers make an informed decision," said the executives of one of the ecommerce companies on the condition of anonymity.
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