October 11, 2007	Thursday	Ramazan 28, 1428

MUMBAI, Oct 10: Thousands of small traders and shopkeepers protested on Wednesday in India’s financial hub Mumbai against the establishment of Western-style supermarkets, saying their livelihoods would be destroyed.

Organised retail or chain stores account for just four per cent of India’s $350bn retail industry, making it an alluring prospect for big domestic and foreign corporations.

But small “mom and pop” retailers which dominate the retail sector fear they will be undercut by the entry of large chains and forced out of business.

“We are protesting against the entry of foreign and Indian multinationals in the retail trade. Small traders employed for years risk losing their jobs,” said Mohammedali Patel of the Federation of Association of Maharashtra, an umbrella group of several trade unions and associations.

A series of protests against the establishment of large retail stores has already taken place across Uttar Pradesh, Orissa and West Bengal.

Last month corporate giant Reliance Industries fired 1,000 retail employees and froze operations in India’s most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, and eastern Orissa state after violent protests by small traders there.

—AFP