Common Service Centres of GoI to take over E-Commerce in rural areas

On April 29, 2020, the Government of India announced that the Common Service Centres will now take over village level online retail chain. The step is expected to reach more than 60 crores of people in rural region.

Highlights

• The Common Service Centres are to take over the jobs of E-commerce Giants Flipkart and Amazon in the rural regions. 
• The initiative is promoted by Government of India. 
• The village-level online retail chains are being created to address the difficulties created by the restrictions imposed on mobility. 
• GoI has plans to provide massive essential supplies through this initiative.
• The outlets are to be set up and run by private individuals. 
• However, they are to be monitored directly by the Ministry of electronics and IT.

Common Service Centres

• The Common Service Centres are to supply essential commodities like milk, vegetables, fruits, pulses, etc. 
• The consumers shall place their orders at these centres through special applications.
• The Common Service Centres were established in 2006 under National E-Governance Plan. 
• They were to provide cost-effective, high quality voice and data services in the areas of education, telemedicine, e-governance and entertainment.
• The CSC were established to access information to all rural citizens. 
• It also helps in skill upgradation to the youth in the rural.