Answer:
According to research, there is very little known about merchants or traders during the Vedic Age in India, except during the latter part of the period. After the collapse of the initial Indus Valley Civilization, around the 2nd millenium BCE, smaller semi-nomadic, and then settled groups of villages were established in certain regions of the northern part of the Indus Valley, thanks to the influx of Indo-Aryans.
One of the findings about these peoples, all coming from the Rigveda-Samhita, tells that because these settlements were self-sufficient in their agricultural lifestyles, there was very little to no trading. However, at some point between the middle period and later Vedic period, merchants began to emerge. Because this was not yet, during the first two stages, an established activity, there were two major drawbacks, mentioned in the Rigveda. The first, these were adventurous people who faced the wilds to trade in small goods, so they were literally facing wild animals during their journeys to trade. The second was, that, since there were no kingdoms yet established, but rather independent units, there was little to no protection for tradespeople, which meant, they were also at the mercy of robbers, and attacks by other tribes and people.
These are two of the most mentioned.
