NEW DELHI, INDIA (Smart Cities News): On Wednesday, the government of India is presently holding stakeholder consultations with states, central ministries, and technical institutions to expand the development of smart freight cities in the country during the Lok Sabha session.
State governments work to identify cities for development as smart freight cities, Minister of Central for Commerce and Industry Shri Piyush Goyal said in a written answer in the Lok Sabha. One of the inputs during stakeholder consultations has started with a list of 10 such cities, which has not been finalised. “The government is presently holding stakeholder consultations with state governments, central ministries, technical institutions, etc., to explore the development of smart freight cities in the country,” said Shri Piyush Goyal.
Replying to a question on Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Shri Som Parkash said it aims to promote open networks for all aspects of the exchange of goods and services over digital or electronic networks.
“ONDC is expected to make e-commerce more inclusive and accessible for customers. Customers can potentially discover any seller, product or service by using any compatible application or platform, thus increasing freedom of choice for consumers,” said Shri Som Prakash
In addition, ONDC will enable the consumers to match demand with the nearest available supply. “This would also give consumers the liberty to choose their preferred local businesses. Thus, ONDC would standardise operations, promote inclusion of local suppliers, drive efficiencies in logistics and lead to enhancement of value for consumers,” said State Minister in the official statement.