The Retailers Association of India (RAI) has welcomed the Telangana government’s decision to allow shops and establishments to operate round the clock.
Describing the move as an ease of doing business (EoDB)-enabling measure, RAI CEO Kumar Rajagopalan said it will be a win-win for consumers, businesses, and the government. “This step will not only provide consumers the flexibility to shop at their convenience but also give an impetus to retail businesses. Opening of retail 24X7 will give a boost to tourism in the State, help create more jobs and collection of tax by the government,” he said in a release.
The association said it had been working with the Telangana government as well as various other State governments for enabling EoDB and allowing retailers to operate 24X7, in line with the governments of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Retail in India, which is expected to touch $2 trillion by 2032, continues to be one of the country’s largest industries that makes up for over 10% of the GDP, the RAI said.
Telangana government, while issuing guidelines for granting exemption from Section 7 (Opening and Closing hours) of the Telangana Shops and Establishments Act, 1988, to all shops and establishments, defined in Section 2 (21) to operate round the clock, said the permission is subject to fulfilling certain conditions.
