Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal said that Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) was created to democratise the existing ecommerce ecosystem of the country during his virtual address at the “ONDC Elevate” program in Bengaluru.  Shri Goyal chaired the program and said that ONDC is an engine of growth that has the potential to redefine the industry completely.

The Minister said that a significant number of sellers on the network is itself a testimony to ONDC's impact as digital commerce is being re-imagined. Shri Goyal engaged with all Network Participants during the Open House, noting their feedback and guiding them to redouble their efforts to democratize digital commerce in India. The Minister also noted in response to queries from participants that, “any marketplace joining ONDC should come with serious commitment, and not for namesake”. He also pointed out that when a platform comes on ONDC, it should be in the spirit of give and take, and not just simply taking benefit from the network without contributing back to its progress.

“ONDC Elevate” commemorated ONDC's one-year completion, fostering a collaborative environment by bringing together participants and ecosystem players of the network. It provided a platform for open discussions on accomplishments to date and facilitated brainstorming sessions to shape the future trajectory of ONDC.

The members of the ONDC Advisory Council – Dilip Asbe, CEO, NPCI, Adil Zainulbhai, Chairman, Capacity Building Commission and Jaxay Shah, Chairman, QCI also attended the event. This interactive session gave participants the opportunity to share their suggestions, and to benefit from the guidance of the Hon’ble Minister and the advisory council members.

Shri T. Koshy, MD & CEO, ONDC said that as ONDC completes a year of its operations, it's an ideal time to take a look back on what has been achieved so far while preparing for the future. He said that from 5 cities to 236 cities, the network has continuously evolved with diverse participation of merchants.

The group also discussed the various milestones ONDC has completed in the past year. From the launch of beta testing on September 29, 2022, ONDC has scaled to 36,000 sellers, 45+ Network participants and 8+ categories, with a weekly average of 13,000+ retail orders and 36,000+ mobility rides per day with peak transactions reaching 25,000 retail orders on a day. The workshop also focused on the impact ONDC is generating, especially for SHGs and non-digitized sellers.

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