Local traders in India have held more protests against the expansion of Reliance Retail across the country.
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Police closed shops in the Indian city of Bhubaneswar yesterday (7 November), as traders protested against the opening of Reliance Fresh outlets.
“We are against Reliance and the whole idea of big companies setting up in retail must be stopped at once,” K. Mohanthy, one of the protestors, told just-food.
The protests were against the state government’s decision to allow Reliance Retail to open 30 more Reliance Fresh outlets in the city. The company has already opened three stores in Bhubaneswar.
The protests followed a huge demonstration in Mumbai last month against the growth of organised retail in India.
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By GlobalDataManu Kapoor, vice president for corporate affairs at Reliance Retail, said: “We have to wait and negotiate with the people once again, since they really have nothing to lose but a lot to gain.”
However, local traders believe otherwise. Mohanty said: “First, they will take our suppliers, then they will take our customers. Small business will be out of business if we don’t stop them now.”
