Prelims · Economy & social development · 32 questions

Industry, infrastructure & investment

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Prelims 2022 · Q6

Medium

With reference to foreign-owned e-commerce firms operating in India, which of the following statements is/are correct?

1.They can sell their own goods in addition to offering their platforms as market-places.
2.The degree to which they can own big sellers on their platforms is limited.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Answer & explanation

Answer: (d) Neither 1 nor 2

India's FDI policy lets foreign-owned e-commerce firms run only a marketplace, not an inventory model, so they cannot sell goods they own. And a seller in which the marketplace or its group companies hold any equity cannot sell on that platform at all — the bar is outright, not a matter of degree — so both statements fail.

✗ 1. 100% FDI is allowed only in the marketplace model; FDI is not permitted in the inventory-based model. A marketplace that owns or controls the goods sold becomes an inventory model, so a foreign-owned platform cannot sell its own stock.
✗ 2. Press Note 2 (2018) does not set a permitted level of ownership: any entity with equity participation by the marketplace or its group companies, or whose inventory they control, cannot sell on that platform. Owning sellers on the platform is barred, not merely limited.

Remember · FDI in e-commerce: 100% automatic in the marketplace model; none in the inventory model. Sellers with marketplace-group equity cannot sell on that platform (Press Note 2, 2018).

Sources

DPIIT, Press Note No. 2 (2018 Series) — FDI in e-commerce ↗ “E-commerce entity providing a marketplace will not exercise ownership or control over the inventory i.e. goods purported to be sold. Such an ownership or control over the inventory will render the business into inventory based model. … having equity participation by e-commerce marketplace entity or its group companies, or having control on its inventory by e-commerce marketplace entity or its group companies, will not be permitted to sell its products on the platform”

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

Prelims 2022 · Q79

Medium

With reference to the “Tea Board” in India, consider the following statements:

1.The Tea Board is a statutory body.
2.It is a regulatory body attached to the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
3.The Tea Board’s Head Office is situated in Bengaluru.
4.The Board has overseas offices at Dubai and Moscow.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (d) 1 and 4

The Tea Board is a statutory body set up under Section 4 of the Tea Act, 1953, and it runs promotion offices abroad, including Dubai and Moscow. It works under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, not Agriculture, and its head office is in Kolkata, not Bengaluru.

✓ 1. The Tea Board was constituted on 1 April 1954 under Section 4 of the Tea Act, 1953, so it is a statutory body of the Central Government.
✗ 2. It functions under the Ministry of Commerce (Department of Commerce), not the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
✗ 3. The Board's head office is at 14, BTM Sarani, Kolkata, not in Bengaluru.
✓ 4. Its published list of offices abroad includes Dubai and Moscow, besides London.

Remember · Tea Board: statutory body under the Tea Act, 1953; Ministry of Commerce and Industry; head office in Kolkata; overseas offices include London, Dubai and Moscow.