By Dr. Sanjay Chaturvedi, LLB, PhD.
Brihan Mumbai Mahanagar Pallika and many Local Self Governments in the country forcing people to close the shops at 10 pm. Normal business hours or rather need for shopping / time arises after working hours in offices. And we have undeclared rule by bosses that we have to work late in the evening. One gets time only after 9 pm to shop his day to day kirana and shop for necessities.
Where we get time for window shopping? Why can’t we have 24×7 bazar open? Why can’t our malls are opened all 24 hours? What revenue loss it will make if shops and bazars are open 24 hours like in any part of the world specifically Dubai.
In Goa or else where, shops are forcefully closed. The latest being Law enforcing agencies wants five star hotels to shut their shops by 1.30 am. When economies are worsening, let the free and liberalised regime work for players.
Consumer behavior is the study of when, why, how, and where people do or do not buy a product. It blends elements from psychology, sociology, social anthropology and economics. And when it comes the question of “when”, we have to make our market flexible and give a long head thought for the idea and demand for such lenient views.
Demographics continued to show a positive skew to spur retailing growth. Consumers groups aged between 20-45 years are emerging as the fastest growing consumer group and the mean age of Indians is now pegged at 27, a mean age that reinforces spending across all the retailing channels of grocery, non-grocery and non-store. India’s burgeoning middle class will drive up nominal retail sales through 2010 by 10 percent per annum. At the same time, organised retail is becoming more important. At present organized retail accounts for a mere 3 percent of the total; by 2010 this share will already have reached 10 percent. Thus most of India’s growth in retail is in the future, not the past.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) in retailing still remains a widely debated and a heated issue on India’s economic and political scene. The government stance of protecting local retailers and prohibiting 100 percent foreign direct investment in retailing. But we need to open the rout and investors wants liberalised market and not forced market. Just imagine, if our shops are open for 24×7, how much employment will be generated. How much tourist will attracted and what tax exchequers will get out of double Dhamaal.
Government want people to spend less to curb the inflation, this strategy will not work in long run. Let the market forces establish its own path and Real Estate gets benefit and freedom from too many regulators.
