Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Monday said that the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) was created to democratise the existing e-commerce ecosystem of the country and is an engine of growth that has the potential to redefine industry completely.

The Minister was speaking during his virtual address at the “ONDC Elevate” programme in Bengaluru. Mr Goyal chaired the programme.

The “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 Minister said that the significant number of sellers on the network is itself a testimony to ONDC’s impact as digital commerce being re-imagined. Mr Goyal engaged with all Network Participants during the Open House, taking note of their feedback and guiding them to redouble their efforts to democratize digital commerce in India.

In response to queries from participants, the Minister said that, “any marketplace joining ONDC should come with a serious commitment, and not for namesake.” He 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.

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 an opportunity to share their suggestions, and to benefit from guidance of the Minister and the advisory council members.

Mr 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 five cities to 236 cities, the network has continuously evolved with diverse participation of merchants.

The group also discussed various milestones ONDC has completed in the past year. From the launch of beta testing on 29 September, 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.