Mobile App To Curb 'Cheating' In Surat Textile Industry

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Mobile App To Curb 'Cheating' In Surat Textile Industry

The mobile application, Vepar Suraksha Kavach Arjun, has data of traders, including their identity details and address, to ensure transparency in business. There are over 80,000 textile traders in Surat city in 175 textile markets and the SMA claims to have 15,000 registered members. In a bid to identify and avoid "cheating firms", the Surat Merchantile Association (SMA) has launched a mobile application for android phones for textile traders. The mobile application, Vepar Suraksha Kavach Arjun, has data of traders, including their identity details and address, to ensure transparency in business. SMA president Narendra Saboo, a textile trader, said, "The main objective of this application is ensuring fair business practices… it will help businessmen identify cheating firm owners. The annual loss due to cheating is over Rs 500 crore with many innocent traders being victimised… some of them even committed suicide due to the losses they faced." "We have also rated the business record of textile traders. The names of traders involved in cheating will be displayed alongwith their photos, address and shop details," he added. The data uploaded on Arjun application, developed by Surat based IT firm Healthy infotech, was cross-verified, said Jitendra Surana, core committee member of SMA. Textile traders also can put up advertisement on the portal, announce vacancies as well as update details on shifting business. There are over 80,000 textile traders in Surat city in 175 textile markets and the SMA claims to have 15,000 registered members. Gaurav Bhasin, another cofounder member of SMA, said, "We will cover the powerloom sector, embroidery industry, as well as dyeing and printing sectors. Thousands of people from other states come to Surat to buy textiles, unaware about the trader with whom they are doing business. We will also register the cloth merchants of others states on this application later."