NEW DELHI | MUMBAI: India’s handset sector has slashed over 250,000 jobs over the past two years as the rapid growth of e-commerce hurt brick-and-mortar stores and Chinese companies virtually wiped out their local rivals, industry associations said.The cut of about 15% of the workforce comprised mainly of in-store brand promoters who were put out of work after thousands of small phone-retailing shops shut down, according to industry executives and retailers. India had about 400,000 handset retailing outlets, including mom-and-pop and large-format stores, each of which used to employ three to five in-shop brand representatives, they said.Besides, Indian and overseas handset companies have reduced retailing expenses to focus on profit. On the manufacturing side, companies including Micromax and Intex have laid off people.“More than 250,000 jobs have been lost over the past two years because many retail shops had closed, in-shop promoters have been laid off and even distribution chains had also shut shop,” said Pankaj Mohindroo, president of the Indian Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA). “Some 20,000-25,000 people on the manufacturing side have also been affected by the job cuts, but it is retail and distribution that have seen the maximum impact.”India’s unemployment rate stood at 6.1% in FY18 and the job losses in the handset sector come as the country’s economic growth slowed to 6.8% in FY19. The auto industry has been one of the most high-profile casualties of the slowdown, with volume contraction in the June quarter the steepest since FY01.Over 1 million people may be laid off if the auto industry continues to slide, according to Ram Venkataramani, president of the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India.The All India Retailers Association of India (AIMRA) said ICEA’s estimates were “conservative” and that the number of shop assistants at mom-and-pop and large format stores had actually reduced by half because more consumers were researching online before making purchases, leaving little room for retailers to influence their choices.“Because of the impact of online shopping and several brands shutting shop, layoffs in the handset industry have been on the higher side,” said AIMRA national president Arvinder Khurana. “In the stores I own, I have half the people that I used to have about a year back.”Khurana said when there were 10-11 major domestic and Chinese smartphone companies in the market, each had its own in-shop promoters and team leaders. Now, there are five to six leading brands and only limited staff is being deployed at select stores, he said.The landscape of India’s handset industry has changed dramatically over the past two years. Chinese companies now command about 75% of the market. Reliance Jio Infocomm’s ultra-low priced 4G feature phones have pushed local manufacturers Micromax and Lava to the fringes and Intex and Karbonn out of the market.Micromax and Intex did not respond to queries from ET on job losses.Thousands of retail shops, a channel that once was the strength of Indian handset companies, have shut down and several thousands of people have been laid off at handset assembling facilities. Besides, even Chinese companies are cutting back on in-shop executives and commissions as they target profitability.One retailer said the surviving handset makers are now channelling their business operations by removing distribution layers – following the model of China’s Xiaomi – to widen their margins and plough funds back into the business to stay afloat.Recruiters and head-hunters corroborated the grim situation and told ET that handset margins are dwindling, leading to the closure of multiple distribution channels.“There is little need for sales or marketing staff in the wake of online sales and those on the rolls are being asked to leave,” said one recruiter.