Tale of traditional traders

The times when many time-honoured areas among the multitude of human pursuits first witnessed emergence of terms such as bio-technology, bio-engineering, bio-this and bio-that and subsequently suffered veiled ridicule from the orthodoxy before either fading on count of novelty in public domain or accepted without perceptible fanfare. Currently, the world in general and almost all its constituent countries in particular have got submerged as it were in e-this, e-that with e-commerce and e-banking swallowing the masses knocking out their time-honoured paper/pen-dependent transactions, leaving the digitally-illiterate sections stranded and feeling badly let down. The army of computer software professionals are calling the shots generating apps in numbers beyond the ability of lay masses to make out how to make them part of their daily life. The elderly, confronting the gen next taking to brazenly computerised ways of life have no option other than learning at the hands (feet) of their progeny, often facing embarrassing moments. The rapidly emerging area of e-commerce, unwittingly, has dealt a deathblow to traditional traders such as kirana shops, which have first got hit by glitzy malls and departmental stores and now e-this and e-that.

Trading in the articles sought by citizens such as daily needs of grocery as well as other materials figuring in events such as festivals, marked by long history, used to be the calling of a specific section of society. So also, the hotel enterprise. That order has yielded to the present scenario in which trading is no longer tied to a particular section of society.

The example of Mysuru and other cities with comparable features of the socio-economic image across the country illustrate the gradual makeover from brick and mortar retail outlets to online shopping under the e-commerce umbrella. Multinational players have set shop in the land enabling citizens to buy all their needs, tiny as well as voluminous, without having to move out of the confines of their homes. The traditional trading fraternity, hit by loss and even their captive customers, are on the verge of extinction. The government has taken note of the goings on in the e-commerce sector and has announced framing a national policy on retail trade. The policy is learnt to address specific issues concerning the Centre as well as the States.

The proposed e-commerce policy, expected to be out in September may bring order, which is missing in the light of cut-throat competition among the players offering unprecedented discounts to allure the gullible masses. With that, we come to the sad end of the tale of traditional traders.