ONDC crosses 5.7 lakh merchants and service providers on its platform: MoS IT

The network has experienced rapid expansion, increasing the number of transactions from over 1,000 in January 2023 to over 9.9 million transactions in June 2024.

ONDC has 71 vendor apps, 22 buyer apps and 16 logistics service providers. There are over 5.7 lakh vendors and service providers in total

Launched in 2021, ONDC is an initiative of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Its objective is to promote open networks for the exchange of goods and services through digital or electronic networks

The government informed parliament that the Open Digital Commerce Network (ONDC) now has over 570,000 sellers and service providers on its platform.

In a written reply to Rajya Sabha, Minister of State (MoS) for Electronics and Information Technology Jitin Prasada said ONDC has received 71 applications from sellers, 22 applications from buyers and 16 from logistics service providers and there are a total of over 5.7 lakh sellers and service providers operating in the network.

He added that ONDC does not track the number of consumers/shoppers on the network. The network has experienced rapid expansion, growing from over 1,000 transactions in January 2023 to over 9.9 million transactions in June 2024.

Prasada added that ONDC is actively working with various departments in all states and union territories, with each state/union territory appointing an officer to facilitate cooperation at the state level.

To create awareness about ONDC, 198 workshops were conducted with various state departments. As a result, ONDC signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) with 11 states, brought 11 state Emporiums on board and integrated 31 state entities and public sector undertakings (PSUs) with the network.

Launched in 2021, ONDC is an initiative of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) under the Ministry of Trade and Industry. Its aim is to promote open networks for the exchange of goods and services through digital or electronic networks. ONDC is a digital public infrastructure based on a network model, rather than an application or platform.

ONDC is an open-source platform designed to democratize e-commerce in India and bring small businesses online. As a private, non-profit initiative supported by DPIIT, ONDC aims to make e-commerce more accessible across the country. Companies like Delhivery, Paytm, PhonePe, Uber, IDFC Bank, Kotak, Shiprocket, Dunzo, and Tata Neu have integrated their services with ONDC.

The platform is constantly evolving, adding new categories and expanding its range of services across India.

This development comes as ONDC seeks to integrate banks and fintech platformsafter initiating early pilots to disburse credit through its network. The platform has partnered with Tata Group’s super app Tata Neu and Paisabazaar to conduct these pilots. The banks involved include HDFC Bank, IDFC First Bank and Karnataka Bank, while fintech firms like Fibe and others are also part of the integration.