CHENNAI: Opposing the UPA government’s move to open up the retail sector to FDI, Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa said food inflation can be handled: “Only by squarely addressing the infrastructural constraints through appropriate policy support.”Substantiating her demand, Jayalalithaa said that in most countries where the retail market was opened up to FDI, the unorganised sector providing livelihood to millions of traditional vendors had been completely destroyed. Citing examples, she said that in the UK, it was reported that three retail chains controlled 65 per cent of the entire retail market. Similarly, in Thailand, over 30 per cent of the local shops were forced to shut within 10 years of the entry of foreign retailers. Reports in India suggested that 90 per cent of the total retail business was in the unorganised sector, wherein 40 million people depended on it for their employment and livelihood. “While the government of India talks about creation of 10 million jobs in the next three years, this will lead to 40 million people being uprooted and thrown out from their business. Most of these people are not well-educated and will remain unemployed for ever,” she said.
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