New Delhi, Mar 7 (IANS): E-commerce major Amazon's programme to get onboard small retailers and neighbourhood stores, 'Local shops on Amazon', has expanded its network to over 50,000 retailers, said a company statement.

The statement said that the total number of sellers on the program has doubled in the last four months and it has expanded to over 450 cities across India.

"Launched in April 2020, the Local Shops on Amazon program played a key role in helping sellers across the country sustain and grow their business amidst the unprecedented pandemic," it said.

As per the e-commerce major, the programme helps supplement the existing footfalls at their stores with a digital presence on Amazon.in and expands their reach beyond the normal catchment.

Manish Tiwary, Vice President, Amazon India said: "What started as a pilot, has now become a pan-India phenomenon enabling local businesses to come online and benefit from technology adoption and e-commerce."

He said that the encouraging response to the 'Local Shops on Amazon' programme reflects in the rapid scale-up of the program to more than 50,000 sellers in less than one year of launch.

"It underlines how digital enablement and digital inclusion can help them scale and contribute to a digital economy," Tiwary added.