Exim policy not to see changes

dgft nl lakhanpal was in no mood to announce any major change in the exim policy at the fieo meeting held on april 12 in the capital. he did, however, offer to finetune the policy in specific cases. errors and omissions in the policy will be corrected and a comprehensive public notice issued by the end of this month. dgft said a little more than 50 applications were received in the â€˜made in indiaâ€™ scheme under depb. the low level of interest and also abuse were the main factors behind the withdrawal of the scheme. individual cases of hardship will be considered and a separate depb rate may be formulated. exporters say dgft has lost heart and hope a little too early as the concept of brand promotion in the overseas market had just started gathering momentum,. a re-appraisal of the scheme to recognise and reward all made-in-india consumer pack brands in the depb scheme by a suitable misuse proof instrument is the need of the hour. dgft has promptly responded to the complaint to the entry in the depb schedule which barred the facility in cases of export under excise bond. the pre-exim policy 2002-2007 position has been restored. there is a new application form for issue of depb. separate application for the 1997-2002 and 2002-2007 policies should be made. also, valuation of the forex part in the depb will be under the customs notified exchange rates for the particular month. ceramic glazed tile exporters can heave a sigh of relief as the value cap of rs 18 per kg is gone. the rate for paper is now up to six per cent from 3 per cent, whiteners like ujala too get another three per cent depb with the new rates fixed at seven percent. dgft has agreed to consider reverting to the system by which the export processing zone or eou could get the refund of central sales tax from the development commissioner instead of allowing the entitlement to the dta supplier located elsewhere. the balance of convenience lies in allowing the facility to the epz unit since it is in touch with the development commissioner on a day-to-day basis. the garment exporters were especially exercised over the new restriction on eous who can get job work done only by a unit registered with the excise authorities in the new policy. the restriction has greatly compromised the working of the large exporters and manufacturers who have set up eous as they cannot possibly depend upon the vagaries of the licensing system to get imported fabrics into the country for export production. the economics and realities of the global market place dictate the subcontracting of the complex job of conversion into garments to supporting fabricators who are not registered under excise as their clearances are well below the rs 1-crore mark. the exim policy is the current weapon used by the excise authorities to gain control over the decentralised garment production system. the big producers are seriously considering shifting their operations to china where the atmosphere is far more supportive of mass scale export production. a leading consultant said the lifetime recognition to export houses under the golden status is no more. the exim policy has broken yet another promise. yes, there is a substitute provision for automatic renewal for two years, but the customs or the banks will not recognise the export house certificate unless the expiry date is actually changed under the stamp and seal of dgft. however, if the exporter has to go through the motions of securing the amendment, the provision loses its automatic character! exporters expected the corresponding customs notification within seven days of the exim policy as promised by minister maran and cbec chairman. export clearances under advance licences without the hated deec book are held up. the rumour is that the papers are waiting finance ministerâ€™s signature. service exporters are a disappointed lot. they were the ones who had the maximum expectations from the policy. however, there is nothing new in the five-year policy for them. two of the four recognised categories are said to be missing in parts of the exim policy. there is an assurance from the commerce ministry that a separate basket of facilities containing unexpected goodies is under preparation. safeguard rules: the revenue department is serious about meeting the market disruption challenge posed by cheap chinese goods. after the introduction of the special safeguard provision for imports from china in the finance bill 2002, parallel action on detailing the rules of procedure and mode of application along with special cell manned by a good complement of qualified and trained officers is under way. the system will unfurl in full force by mid-may when the bill becomes an act following parliament approval. we will then have four wto approved protection methods, that is, anti dumping, countervailing duty for subsidies, safeguards and special safeguards, in place. ( dgft has not yet made up its mind on when and how to formulate and implement the qr part of the special safeguard mechanism.) (academy of business studies)

Exim policy not to see changes

DGFT NL Lakhanpal was in no mood to announce any major change in the Exim Policy at the FIEO meeting held on April 12 in the Capital. He did, however, offer to finetune the policy in specific cases.

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