The man behind the expansion of Marks and Spencer into India has teamed up with a local competitor.

Mark Ashman, who oversaw the establishment of the joint venture in India between M&S and Reliance Retail, will become the chief executive at Hypercity in the autumn.

Hypercity is a rapidly growing local chain that has since 2006 sold Waitrose products to millions of Indians under an exclusive supply agreement. Waitrose and M&S are already renowned for their UK rivalry, and now the battle has spilled over onto the subcontinent the focus is firmly on India as a producer.  Last year, Mark Price, Waitrose’s chief executive and Sir Stuart Rose, the chairman of M&S, became embroiled in a public slanging match over which company’s products were cheaper.

Mr Ashman held the role of chief executive of Marks & Spencer Reliance Retail, which, in collaboration operated 18 stores across India, with 15 more set to open over the next two years. The partnership said that there will be an estimated 50 M&S stores in the country by 2015. Ashram had left his position in April to return to Britain to lead M&S’s European and Middle Eastern operations. He was wished all the best for his new role by his former employers.

Meanwhile, rival Hypercity operates seven hypermarkets across India, with the group being part owned by another of India’s leading retail organisations Shoppers Stop. The country has had its fashion production industry come increasingly under the media spotlight in recent months, as allegations of poor working conditions have led high street retailers such as Next and Gap to launch independent investigations.

Several of the leading British fashion retailers are launching inquiries into allegations of substandard working conditions in India.

The move comes at a time when the same high street stores, including Marks and Spencer, are embroiled in a wage dispute crisis in Bangladesh that has seen garment workers stage violent protests.

Marks and Spencer has been joined by other well-known stores Next and Gap in launching investigations into their Indian suppliers, after allegations have emerged that young children have been left unattended as parents work in factories on the outskirts of the capital Delhi. According to a report by the London Observer, the fashion houses are responding to claims that these factories have been using middlemen to hire workers for just 25p per hour for Next and Gap, and 26p per hour at for Marks and Spencer. Some workers have also alleged that they have been paid under half of the legal overtime rate.

The trio of retailers have each pledged to end the practice of reportedly excessive overtime which Indian labour laws states is a clear breach of the ethical trading initiative (ETI). The three have apparently advised the Observer that abuses in their supply chains would not be tolerated and that they are 100 per cent committed to ethical trading.

While Marks and Spencer has stated it has not as yet been presented with the appropriate evidence to support the allegations, Gap has advised that it had discovered irregularities with wage violations and ordered its supplier to pay the appropriate compensation to those affected immediately.

Mid-July will see the world’s leading online travel expert, Expedia, unveil a new agency program in India.

Expedia will join forces with the Mumbai based operator Discover the World Marketing to provide first level sales and customer support services for the rapidly booing Indian travel market.

The move will increase Expedia’s position in the Indian sector, with the Travel Agents Affiliate Programme (TAAP) set for release in a little under one month. In line with the introduction of the new offer, Expedia.co.in will also be waiving membership for a period of three months.

Member agents who sign on to the TAAP benefit from the capability to view the Expedia.co.in inventory of car rentals, air and hotel bookings, and also great range destination activities, with bookings available through a dedicated, individual login and password. In addition to the free membership period of three months, travel agents will also be offered a temporary high rate of 12 per cent commission for all hotel bookings, which will revert back to the standard 10 per cent thereafter.

To ensure that the Indian programme experiences effective domestic promotion, Expedia has collaborated with Discover the World Marketing, making the most of promotion to local travel agents through the use of a range of marketing strategies tailored its service the Indian tourism sector.

Expedia’s Manager for Travel Agent Distribution APAC, Stuart Udy, said the launch would follow similar successful undertakings in various other markets such as Italy, Germany, Canada, Australia, the UK, France, New Zealand and the USA.