Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC)

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• Recently, the Union Minister of Commerce & Industry chaired a meeting for the review of the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) initiative of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).

What is ONDC?

• It is a globally first-of-its-kind initiative that aims to democratise digital commerce, moving it from a platform-centric model to an open network.
• As UPI is to the digital payment domain, ONDC is to e-commerce in India.
• ONDC will enable buyers and sellers to be digitally visible and transact through an open network, no matter what platform/application they use.
• ONDC will empower merchants and consumers by breaking silos to form a single network to drive innovation and scale, transforming all businesses from retail goods, food to mobility.

Aims and objectives:

• ONDC aims at promoting open networks developed on open-sourced methodology, using open specifications and open network protocols independent of any specific platform.
• ONDC is expected to digitize the entire value chain, standardize operations, promote inclusion of suppliers, derive efficiencies in logistics and enhance value for consumers.

Functioning of ONDC:

• It primarily focuses on ensuring the confidentiality and privacy of data in the network.
• It shall not mandate sharing of any transaction-level data by participants with ONDC and work with them to publish anonymised aggregate metrics on network performance without compromising on confidentiality and privacy.
• ONDC will be compliant with the information technology act, 2000 and designed for compliance with the emerging personal data protection bill.

Advisory council:

• The advisory council on ONDC was constituted by the Centre in July. It takes over as a guide and mentor in mentor to design, implementation and national rollout of ONDC.

Source: HT