GST poses a hurdle for small firms venturing into e-commerce

Small firms and homemakers trying to upgrade from neighbourhood sales to e-commerce platforms are facing entry barriers in goods and services tax (GST) rules, hurting their ambition to access a large customer base. Parity in tax rules between online and offline retailing will allow them to stay in business by reaching out to online shoppers, at a time demand is struggling to pick up after the lock…