The State Government will formulate a retail trade policy soon as the retail business in the State has picked up in a big way.
The new policy will facilitate a favourable environment for promotion of retail trade and look after the welfare of the traders engaged in the sector.
The policy will take care of ease of doing business, access to credit, adoption of technology, simplification of acts and rules, welfare of traders and creation of organised retail market infrastructure, etc.
Now, major players in the retail trade have made inroads to the State and players like Future Group, Reliance Trade, Food Court, NEXUS and several others are making inroads.
Esplanade One, DN Regalia and Utkal Gallaria to name a few have opened mega malls in Bhubaneswar. Such malls are also coming up in Cuttack, Sambalpur, Rourkela, Brahmapur and other towns.
While shops and business establishments are registered under the Labor and ESI Department, the MSME Department looks after the listing of the Micro and Small Business and Tax Collection is on the shoulders of Commercial Tax Commissioner (CCT).
Sources said only Future Group, market leader in retail sector, is eyeing for a business of Rs 1,000 crore only in Odisha.
So one can imagine the level of business growing in retail trade, said a senior official in CCT.
As the Government of India is taking the matter seriously with formulating National Retail Trade Police, taking a cue, the State Government has moved to prepare a State policy on retail trade, said official sources.
Apart from these big players, there are hundreds of small shop owners doing retail trade. Large numbers of street hawkers are engaged in retail business also.
Retail traders are facing GST problems and there is hardly anyone to guide them. So the State Government will have to take a holistic approach towards the retail trade in the State, while formulating the policy, said a senior officer in Department of MSME.
With Union Government in Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade is looking after retail trade while the State Government is also making serious efforts to ensure a conducive environment for retail trade.
The policy will provide a framework for the growing retail market in the State and it will help out the welfare of the traders and employees for the social benefits also.