R S Sharma Steps Down As Non-Executive Chairperson Of ONDC In 3 Months

Just three months after joining the government-run open network for digital commerce (ONDC) as its non-executive chairperson, Ram Sewak Sharma has reportedly stepped down from the role, citing personal reasons.

As per ET’s report, the former TRAI chairman, Sharma, quit the post a few days ago. However, he will continue to remain as the member of the network’s advisory council.

Inc42 has reached out to him for comments on the development. The story will be updated based on the response.

Sharma is said to be instrumental in the development and implementation of digital public infrastructure projects like Aadhaar, and CoWIN, among others.

With over 40 years of experience, he has held several key roles including the chief executive officer (CEO) of National Health Authority (NHA) between 2021-2023. He also served in TRAI for more than five years, ending 2020. 

Before that, Sharma was also associated with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) in the role of Secretary during 2014-15. 

He also led the design and implementation of the COVID-19 vaccination platform CoWIN.

ONDC is an open protocol-based network to enable local commerce across multiple segments, including grocery and mobility among others. It was incorporated in 2021 as an initiative of DPIIT under the aegis of ministry of commerce and industry. 

The network claims to enable more than 1.2 Cr orders per month and has forayed into categories such as fintech, fashion, electronics in products, and ride-hailing, among others. ONDC claims to have over 6 Lakh sellers live on its network across the country.

ONDC has trimmed its incentive for network participants to INR 40 Lakh for December, marking a 33.33% dip from INR 60 Lakh offered during the festive season in October.

This 33.33% reduction in payout incentives comes after a temporary increase during the festive season to boost demand. 

It is pertinent to note that these incentives are offered to network players, who further use them to fund customer discounts and promotions for increasing adoption of the platform.

Note: We at Inc42 take our ethics very seriously. More information about it can be found here.