Amazon India and Flipkart, India’s e-commerce giants, have gone into damage control mode following the spate of government raids over the past few weeks. Particularly damaging has been the 15-hour raids on their warehouses last week, which unearthed a massive number of fake and non-compliant products.
Amazon India spokesman responded arguing it had regulations and compliance measures in place and that it takes ‘appropriate action’ whenever it is notified of ‘non-compliance’.
In last week’s raids by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) on warehouses of e-commerce giants Amazon and Flipkart, the government agency reported that thousands of units of fake items were seized, ranging from shoes to electronic items.
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The move is part of a nationwide crackdown by government agencies on e-commerce malpractices. Customer complaints over fake and/or substandard products being peddled in the name of branded products have been a long-standing grievance from Indian customers to consumer protection authorities.
Over the past few weeks, similar raids were conducted in godowns across towns like Gurugram, Faridabad, Lucknow and Faridabad.
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“We require sellers who list and sell products on Amazon to comply with applicable laws, regulations and Amazon policies. Upon being notified of any non-compliance, we take appropriate action,” Amazon India spokesperson said in a statement. Flipkart, on its part, said the platform has several processes to review the listings sellers make on the marketplace, and regularly conduct audits to ensure compliance.”
“We are engaged closely with various stakeholders, including regulators, to provide customers with a great shopping experience,” claimed the Amazon India spokesperson.
The raids last week on Amazon associate in Mohan Cooperative Estate in Delhi, as well as Flipkart subsidiary Instakart, unravelled 3,500 uncertified electrical appliances worth 70 lakh rupees and non-compliant sports shoes worth 6 lakh rupees.
