India may post $150bn exports by fiscal end

NEW DELHI: India is well on its way to achieving the $150bn mark in exports by the end of next fiscal, well before the government’s target of ’08-09, if the industry reaches the $130-bn mark by the end of the current fiscal, according to the CII national committee on trade policy. Having set a new target for the fiscal, the committee has recommended that four ports in the country be dedicated to exports and port linkages be improved. India crossed the $100-bn export mark in fiscal ‘05-06.

At its meeting with the director general of foreign trade, KT Chacko, on Monday, the CII committee recommended that an interministerial committee be set up comprising officials from finance and commerce ministries and industry representatives. The proposed committee will look into procedural issues involving exports like notifications.

Roads linking export clusters to ports are another area of concern. “There is need for better linkages with ports. It takes about 16 days for a shipment to reach a port from a cluster in north India, almost the same time it takes the shipment to reach Europe from the port. There is the question of financing construction and upgradation of roads, a state subject. We need to consider possible revenue models for such projects, including potential public-private partnerships,” said Sanjay Budhia, chairman, CII national committee on trade policy.

On the exporters’ demand that the retrospective clause in the modified Target Plus Scheme be removed, Mr Chacko is learnt to have told the industry representatives that while the issue would be considered, it would be difficult to do away with the clause.India’s exports in July surged over 40% on a year-on-year basis.