Govt to soon announce interest subvention scheme for exporters
NEW DELHI: Concerned over a continuous decline in exports, the government on Friday said it will soon announce an interest subsidy scheme for exporters.
“The interest subvention scheme is to be announced soon, which will give encouragement to sectors that have high potential,” commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman said.
Under the interest subvention scheme, exporters get loans at affordable rates. The 3% scheme ended on March 31 last year.
Exports declined for the seventh month in June, falling 15.82% to $22.28 billion, due to the global slowdown and fall in crude oil prices that hit shipments of petroleum products.
Exports are largely suffering because international demand is not picking up and currencies, particularly the euro, are depreciating, Sitharaman said.
The ministry is discussing the matter with industry groups to find ways to boost exports and explore new markets, she added.
On existing markets, Sitharaman said the ministry is “certainly going ahead” with the proposed free trade agreement with the European Union, irrespective of the Greek debt crisis.
Both sides are expected to meet next month to begin talks.
On reports that the government has asked chief economic adviser Arvind Subramanian to look into the country’s free trade agreements, she said: “Finance ministry would do it for their reasons because investments and investment protection agreements will have to be given a final shape by the ministry itself.”
Regarding a question on steel producers’ demand to impose import duty on Chinese products, the minister said the government will have to take a balanced view looking into the interest of the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) using imported steel.
“I will have to highlight few things. Dumping per se, yes, we can afford it, it distorts the market. But Indian steel is also very expensive. Many small industries that depend on steel as raw material have also come to us and said they need cheap raw material,” she said.
Sitharaman also pushed for early passage of the Land Bill, currently stuck due to opposition from various parties. “We want to move forward because we strongly believe we are not denying anybody their rights. On the contrary, this bill would probably give the farmers much more than what the 2013 Act envisaged,” she said.