Praveen Khandelwal resigns from ONDC Advisory Council

The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) on Saturday said its Secretary General Praveen Khandelwal has resigned as a member of ONDC Advisory Council. The council has been constituted to advise the government on measures needed to design and accelerate adoption of Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC).

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has initiated a project on ONDC, which is expected to digitise the entire value chain, standardise operations, promote inclusion of suppliers, derive efficiencies in logistics and enhance value for consumers.

"Citing moral and ethical grounds and to avoid any conflict of interest, Praveen Khandelwal, Secretary General of CAIT has today resigned from ONDC Advisory Council," the confederation said in a statement.


Khandelwal in his resignation letter to Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said his presence in the council will give rise to conflict of interest as CAIT is going to shortly launch its e-commerce portal - Bharatemarket.

"Being a stakeholder, it would not be ethical and proper for me to continue as a Member of the ONDC Advisory Council unlike Nandan Nilekani of Infosys which is supporting Amazon and Adil Zainulbhai who is on the board of Reliance," Khandelwal added.

Nilekani and Zainulbhai are members of the council.