GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO 277 (H) TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 IMPORT RESTRICTIONS BY EU AND THE US *277(H) SHRI SURENDRA SINGH NAGAR: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY be pleased to state: (a) the details of import ban imposed by the European Union countries and the US on Indian products, on the basis of phytosanitary regulations and other non-tariff restrictions during last three years; (b) the total volume of export opportunities lost by India due to the above; (c) whether India is also utilising phytosanitary regulations and other non-tariff restrictions to protect the interests of Indian consumers and Indian economy; and (d) if so, the details of products, the imports of which have been blocked in India on the basis of phytosanitary regulations and other non-tariff restrictions during the last three years?     ANSWER THE MINISTER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI SURESH PRABHU) a) to d): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House ***** STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (d) OF RAJYA SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO 277(H) FOR ANSWER ON 21st MARCH, 2018 REGARDING “IMPORT RESTRICTIONS BY EU AND THE US”   (a): As per available information, no ban has been imposed by US in the last three years EU had imposed a temporary ban on importation of mango and four other vegetables viz brinjal, snake gourd, bitter gourd and taro leaves The ban was imposed on the ground of interception of high number of harmful pests and organisms in the consignments exported to EU However, through efforts made by India, the bans were revoked The details regarding ban imposition and revocation are given in the following Table: Name of fruits and vegetables Mango four vegetables (brinjal, snake gourd, bitter gourd and taro leaves) Ban imposed by EU 1st May 2014 1st May 2014 Ban revoked by EU 5th Feb 2015 31st Dec 2016 (b): The export of a product depends on numerous factors such as supply and demand of the products, ease of export to a country, sanitary and phyto-sanitary requirements of importing country, inflation rate, currency exchange rates etc It is therefore not feasible to calculate the total export opportunities lost by India on account of import restrictions by EU and US based on phyto-sanitary regulations (c): Sanitary and Phyto Sanitary Agreement under the WTO recognizes Member States’ right to adopt or develop sanitary and phyto-sanitary measures necessary to protect human, animal or plant life or health Such measures should be based as far as possible on the basis of objective and accurate scientific data with the aim to protect human, animal or plant life or health As a member of WTO, all sanitary and phyto-sanitary measures developed by India are based on aforementioned conditions (d): In accordance with the WTO framework, India has in the last years suspended imports of the following on the basis of interception of quarantine pests in the imported consignments: i ii Coffee beans, Bamboo, Black Pepper, Cinnamon, Cassia and Dragon fruit from Vietnam Apples, Pears and Tagetes Seeds from People’s Republic of China ******      GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2881 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 EXPORT OF SPECIAL VARIETIES OF RICE FROM TAMIL NADU 2881 DR V MAITREYAN: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) whether the Central Government has considered and included the special varieties of rice cultivated in Tamil Nadu for export promotion on the lines of Basmati rice; (b) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; (c) what steps have been taken by Government to facilitate the export of special varieties of rice from Tamil Nadu; and (d) if so, the action taken thereon?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   (a) to (d): The promotion of exports of agricultural commodities like rice is a continuous process The Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), an autonomous organisation under the administrative control of the Department of Commerce, has the mandate to promote exports of agricultural & processed food products, including rice APEDA provides assistance to the exporters of agricultural and processed food products, including rice, under various component of its scheme “Agriculture & Processed Food Export Promotion Scheme of APEDA” viz Infrastructure Development, Quality Development and Market Development Assistance is also provided to exporters/state governments under various other schemes of Department of Commerce viz Trade Infrastructure for Export Scheme (TIES), Market Access Initiative (MAI) Scheme etc Assistance  under  the  above  schemes  is  available  to  all  the  exporters  of  agricultural products including rice exporters from Tamil Nadu.    ******      GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2883 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 REDUCTION OF SUBSIDIES TO FARMERS 2883 SHRI RAVI PRAKASH VERMA: SHRI NEERAJ SHEKHAR: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) whether Government has agreed under pressure from the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to reduce the subsidies provided by Government to farmers below 10 per cent of gross agricultural production; (b) if so, the details thereof and reasons for compromise with the interest of farmers and food security of the country; and (c) if not, the year-wise details of subsidies provided by Government during the last three years in percentage of gross agriculture production? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   a) No, Sir b) Does not arise in view of (a) above c) The relevant rules of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) categorise all agricultural support measures broadly into those that distort trade and those that have no or minimal trade-distorting effect There are limits on the amount of trade-distorting support that can be provided Agricultural support measures that have no or minimal trade-distorting effect can be freely used The rules applicable to most developing countries allow for product-specific trade distorting support upto 10% (‘de minimis’) of the value of production of the product Similarly, total trade-distorting support, which is not specific to any product, can be provided upto a limit of 10% of the total value of agricultural production India has always kept its trade-distorting support within the applicable limits Further, India has been providing input subsidies and non-trade-distorting agricultural support, where the limits not apply ****    GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2886 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 IMPACT OF GST ON INDIA'S EXPORT PERFORMANCE 2886 SHRI K.K RAGESH: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) whether Government has conducted any studies to ascertain the impact of GST on India's export performance; (b) if so, the details thereof; (c) whether any measures have been taken to address the adverse impacts, if any; and (d) if so, the details thereof?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   (a) & (b) : Government has not conducted any study to ascertain the impact of GST on export India’s export is impacted by several factors both endogenous and exogenous including structural, fiscal and monetary (exchange rate) factors Export data post-GST given below shows that monthly exports are consistently higher than corresponding period of previous year except in Oct 2017 Post-GST (July 2017 – January 2018) the growth rate of India’s export is 11.3% compared to the same period of previous year:   Monthly Exports post-GST (US$ Billion) Months July August September October November December January Total Merchandise Export 20162017% 17 18 chg Services Export 2016- 2017% 17 18 chg 21.69 22.35 21.60 23.52 22.77 28.73 23.36 22.82 20.07 25.92 24.06 27.07 22.36 24.96 155.90 175.36 12.78 13.18 13.38 13.70 13.77 13.73 13.11 14.15 13.34 15.39 13.80 16.01 13.57 16.34 93.75 102.50 3.0 8.9 26.2 -2.3 29.2 12.5 11.6 12.5 Overall Export 20162017% 17 18 chg 3.2 34.47 35.53 2.4 34.98 37.22 -0.3 36.54 42.46 7.9 36.47 36.97 15.4 33.40 41.32 15.9 37.86 43.07 20.4 35.93 41.30 9.3 249.65 277.86 3.1 6.4 16.2 1.4 23.7 13.8 14.9 11.3 (c)&(d): Implementation of Goods and Services Tax has been widely welcomed by the trade and industry Though there have been some initial problems in implementation, Government has been very responsive in addressing those in time A series of measures have been announced to mitigate the issues faced by exporters The relief package for exporters in October 2017 included exemption of IGST for sourcing inputs both on import as well as domestic supplies under Advance Authorization Scheme, Export Promotion Capital Goods Scheme and 100% Export Oriented Unit Scheme The 26th Meeting of the GST Council on 10.03.2018 has decided to further extend the IGST exemptions till 1.10.2018 on the above schemes Exports have been allowed on furnishing of Legal Undertaking (LUT) without the requirement of Bond/bank guarantee Further, GST on sale of Duty Credit Scrips (which are basically incentives on exports) has been reduced to Zero from the earlier rate of 12% GST on job work in textiles sector, diamond processing in Jewellery sector and leather and footwear sectors has been brought down to 5% The Government has also taken measures and issued instructions to expeditiously disburse the refund of IGST paid on goods exported Besides, GST council is meeting at regular intervals to address concerns of industry regarding various issues related to GST including rationalisation of GST rates, simplification in filing of GST returns, expediting the process of refunds of Integrated GST and Input Tax Credit for exporters *******     GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2887 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 GRANT OF LOAN AGAINST FORGED DOCUMENTS BY PEC LIMITED 2887 DR K.V.P RAMACHANDRA RAO: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) whether it is a fact that the Project Equipment Corporation (PEC) Ltd has granted a huge loan against forged land documents pledging entire village in Ranga Reddy district of Telangana, if so, the details thereof; (b) what are the primary duties of PEC and how the PEC is sanctioning huge amounts of loan without verifying the authenticity of documents; and (c) whether Government has any control over the PEC and how Government is planning to recover the loan?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   (a)         No, Sir PEC Limited has not granted any loan against forged land documents However, in one of the business transactions, security was provided by one of the business associates by mortgaging property against previous outstanding dues caused due to non-fulfilment of export contracts of Iron Ore from Goa The mortgage covers village land in Ranga Reddy (East) district of Telangana The party had provided the Title deeds, due diligence report and valuation certificate PEC had also registered mortgage property in favour of PEC with Sub Registrar of Ranga Reddy (East) district The title of the land mortgaged has recently been revealed to be defective   (b)         PEC was created in 1971 with a mandate to handle the canalised business of railway equipment, engineering equipment and turnkey projects In the post liberalisation period, with de-canalization of commodities PEC changed its course of business by adopting different business models and diversified into other areas like international trade (import and export) of industrial raw material, agro commodities, etc PEC performs the business in association with private parties or Public Sector Undertakings on back to back Associate ship Agreement basis after taking due diligence PEC at present has stopped financing for trade   (c)             PEC is a Central Public Sector Undertaking under the administrative control of Ministry of Commerce and Industry and works with functional autonomy The Board of PEC, at present, have two Government Directors The Department of Commerce signs a MoU with the PEC every year and the performance of the CPSE is reviewed against the MoU targets Department of Commerce has directed PEC to make all efforts to expedite recovery of outstanding from the defaulters.PEC Limited has taken appropriate civil and criminal action to recover the outstanding from the party including filing cases under 138 Negotiable Instruments Act and reference to CBI     ********     GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2888 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 DERIVING ADVANTAGES FROM THE IMPACTS OF WTO POLICIES 2888 SHRI MANISH GUPTA Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) whether India has been able to derive any decisive advantages from the impacts of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) policies, if so, the details thereof; and (b) whether there is any serious conflict in the WTO between rich and developing countries in respect of retention of subsidies and resisting opening of the markets of the former; if so, the details thereof   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   a) The  WTO  rules  have  been  framed  and  adopted  through  a  process  of  consensus.  India,  like  many  other  developing countries, joined the consensus after ensuring that its trade interests would be protected. The  trade  rules  of  the  WTO,  its  dispute  settlement  mechanism  and  methods  of  decision‐making  provide  stability and predictability to the global trading system. As a developing country, India has been able to  get  the  benefit  of  various  special  and  differential  treatment  provisions  in  the  WTO  Agreements.  These  special  provisions  include,  for  example,  longer  time  periods  for  implementing  Agreements  and  commitments or measures to increase trading opportunities for developing countries. The opening in the  global markets has helped Indian trade both in goods and services.  b) There are differences in the positions of the developed and developing countries on various issues under  negotiation in the WTO. For example, in the agriculture negotiations, while developed countries are now  focusing on gaining more market access for their exports, developing countries have been calling for the  elimination of the large agricultural subsidies provided by developed countries, which was one of the key  objectives  of  the  negotiations.  Further,  exports  from  developing  countries  also  face  various  non‐tariff  barriers in developed country markets.   *****            GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2889 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 WTO'S AGENDA FOR RESOURCE POOR FARMING FAMILIES 2889 SHRI MANISH GUPTA: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) whether the World Trade Organisation (WTO) has any visible agenda for the resourcepoor farming families; (b) whether the WTO Agreement requires India to pay more attention to quality, value addition and the sustainability aspects of its agriculture, if so, the details thereof; and (c) whether there is a mismatch between production and post-harvest technologies and lack of infrastructure for handling perishable commodities affecting India's exports?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   (a) Special and differential treatment provisions are available for developing countries across the agreements of the World Trade Organization (WTO), which, inter-alia, are intended to safeguard the interests of low income or resource-poor farmers in developing countries In terms of the provisions of the WTO Agreement on Agriculture, input and investment subsidies can be provided without any limit to low-income, resource-poor farmers in developing countries (b) : The WTO rules regarding sanitary and phytosanitary measures allow countries to adopt or enforce measures necessary to protect human, animal and plant life or health subject to the requirement that these measures are not applied in a manner which would constitute a means of arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination between WTO members or a disguised restriction on international trade Such provisions encourage WTO members to improve their farming methods and the manner in which they use various inputs such as chemicals and pesticides (c) : Exports of agricultural products depend on a number of factors including the availability and quality of production and post-harvest technology and infrastructure All such factors are taken into account while framing agricultural trade policy *****  MAJOR ITEM/COUNTRY-WISE EXPORT OF SPICES FROM INDIA        QTY  MAJOR ITEM/COUNTRY CURRY  2014-15   VALUE   POWDER/MIXTURE     VALUE   2015-16 QTY         VALUE  VALUE       2016-17(P) QTY       VALUE   VALUE     U.S.A  3121.49  6767.75 11.05 2872.05 6488.74 9.92  2863.98 7193.27 10.72 SAUDI ARABIA  3250.99  6413.98 10.47 2849.65 6280.07 9.60  3207.85 7171.30 10.69 U.A.E  3032.46  6708.14 10.95 4041.81 8599.68 13.15  2634.68 6518.30 9.72 U.K  3516.64  6479.72 10.58 3466.14 5894.76 9.01  2912.33 5884.33 8.77 QATAR  803.13  1840.62 3.01 1200.44 3026.22 4.63  1017.29 2696.32 4.02 KUWAIT  872.96  1805.27 2.95 876.35 2076.23 3.17  1064.59 2561.11 3.82 CANADA  531.91  1093.78 1.79 561.15 1339.77 2.05  1177.02 2341.16 3.49 1026.73  2137.32 3.49 2569.51 3969.87 6.07  945.16 2225.12 3.32 549.59  1434.17 2.34 549.32 1635.45 2.50  657.65 1886.59 2.81 1072.64  1661.56 2.71 1219.68 2055.76 3.14  1041.78 1571.29 2.34 SINGAPORE  254.10  530.68 0.87 346.33 730.18 1.12  396.57 1076.13 1.60 BAHARAIN  243.77  507.65 0.83 300.49 694.63 1.06  360.85 794.89 1.18 24650.00  47626.00 77.76 26550.00 53174.50 81.30  28500.00 59910.00 89.31 AUSTRALIA  OMAN  NIGERIA  TOTAL(INCL.OTHERS) SPICE OILS &      OLEORESINS      U.S.A  3006.00  55858.39 91.21 2531.81 61125.72 93.46  3041.69 78692.96 117.31 CHINA  1356.00  14808.13 24.18 2026.43 24936.93 38.13  1496.98 18920.40 28.20 526.00  10646.75 17.38 540.01 11307.33 17.29  519.16 15201.45 22.66 GERMANY  KOREA(SOUTH)  498.00  8564.32 13.98 527.32 7438.50 11.37  809.13 12378.74 18.45 U.K  623.00  10430.98 17.03 565.62 8966.76 13.71  671.62 11711.45 17.46 NETHERLANDS  159.00  3203.67 5.23 172.53 4196.32 6.42  317.16 8112.66 12.09 JAPAN  117.00  6114.14 9.98 95.77 5675.73 8.68  135.61 7169.32 10.69 INDONESIA  322.00  3175.48 5.18 295.59 3037.26 4.64  578.94 6635.30 9.89 FRANCE  137.00  3812.49 6.23 209.76 7594.20 11.61  243.91 6226.89 9.28 DENMARK  46.56  1628.77 2.66 118.12 3643.57 5.57  160.30 5970.03 8.90 THAILAND  327.00  3624.36 5.92 331.89 3990.23 6.10  408.17 5897.14 8.79 AUSTRALIA  166.08  2332.02 3.81 185.19 3391.28 5.19  233.43 5471.50 8.16 SPAIN  324.00  3571.13 5.83 330.17 4707.00 7.20  340.90 5197.21 7.75 MEXICO  126.88  2282.14 3.73 174.14 2985.01 4.56  245.01 4629.96 6.90 SOUTH AFRICA  326.00  5227.88 8.54 240.32 4165.02 6.37  249.49 4311.07 6.43 HONGKONG  688.00  5942.49 9.70 939.72 7577.91 11.59  175.62 3951.21 5.89 PHILLIPINES  159.62  2817.21 4.60 154.17 2641.93 4.04  183.26 3744.02 5.58 CANADA  178.59  3020.46 4.93 187.64 3241.80 4.96  188.92 3495.02 5.21 BELGIUM  104.77  1200.86 1.96 111.57 1656.02 2.53  181.10 3168.30 4.72 11475.00  191090.00 312.01 11635.00 214255.00 327.60  12100.00 230775.00 344.02 TOTAL(INCL.OTHERS) MAJOR ITEM/COUNTRY-WISE EXPORT OF SPICES FROM INDIA      2014-15    MAJOR ITEM/COUNTRY  MINT PRODUCTS  QTY      VALUE      2015-16 VALUE   QTY             2016-17(P) VALUE  VALUE     QTY    VALUE VALUE     CHINA  14305.27  118684.83  193.79 9518.13 90342.82 138.13  9359.55  94955.46 141.55 U.S.A  6824.40  74740.55  122.04 4860.25 63288.35 96.77  3130.37  41629.23 62.06 NETHERLANDS  609.02  6460.86  10.55 638.65 8828.48 13.50  951.07  12490.54 18.62 GERMANY  908.68  8745.64  14.28 1155.16 13303.79 20.34  707.47  8810.51 13.13 FRANCE  528.83  8190.15  13.37 816.99 10956.65 16.75  667.68  8398.21 12.52 1125.47  10247.83  16.73 1891.63 18224.73 27.87  710.73  7505.00 11.19 U.K  558.13  6276.99  10.25 544.24 7081.76 10.83  462.88  6735.11 10.04 JAPAN  388.89  3916.75  6.40 877.24 10595.82 16.20  483.62  5877.46 8.76 PHILLIPINES  240.62  2879.25  4.70 262.90 3363.08 5.14  216.50  2675.39 3.99 25750.00  268925.00  439.10 21150.00 257759.00 394.11  22300.00  252750.00 376.78 893920.00  1489967.53  2432.85 843255.00 1623822.60 2482.83  947790.00  1766460.65 2633.30 SINGAPORE  TOTAL(INCL.OTHERS)  GRAND TOTAL  (P): Provisional                    Source : DGCI&S Kolkata/Exporters' Returns/DLE from Customs       GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2899 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 FALL IN EXPORT OF HONEY 2899 DR KANWAR DEEP SINGH: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) whether it is a fact that the export of honey is expected to fall; (b) if so, the reasons therefor and its effect on producers thereof; and (c) the steps being taken to tackle this situation?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   (a & b) The details of India’s export of Natural Honey, during the last three years and the current year, are as under: Quantity in MT; Value in US $ Million  2014-15 2015-16 Quantity Value Quantity Value 29578.56 87.40 38177.04 108.68 Source: DGCI&S    2016-17 Quantity Value 45055.45 83.32 2017-18 (April-December) Quantity Value 36348.57 73.98 During 2016-17, while the exports increased in quantity terms, there was a decline in the value terms This can be attributed to fall in international prices, which crashed from around USD 3000/MT in 2015-16 to around USD 1800/MT in 2016-17 The prices have increased only marginally during the current year (c) The promotion of exports of agricultural commodities like honey is a continuous process The Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), an autonomous organisation under the administrative control of the Department of Commerce, has the mandate to promote exports of agricultural & processed food products, including honey APEDA provides assistance to the exporters of agricultural and processed food products, including honey, under various component of its scheme “Agriculture & Processed Food Export promotion Scheme of APEDA” viz Infrastructure Development, Quality Development and Market Development Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) of 5% is available on export of honey Assistance is also provided to exporters/State Governments under various other schemes of Department of Commerce viz Trade Infrastructure for Export Scheme (TIES), Market Access Initiative (MAI) Scheme etc *********      GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2900 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 STATUS OF IT TOWER AT VISAKHAPATNAM SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONE 2900 SHRI V VIJAYASAI REDDY Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) the status of the proposed IT tower at the Visakhapatnam Special Economic Zone, Duvvada; (b) the funds allocated, released and spent by the Ministry towards the project during the last three years and the currentyear, year-wise; and (c) the expected time-line for completion of the project?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   (a):  ‘In principle’ approval for an IT tower at Visakhapatnam Special Economic Zone, Duvvada  under Assistance to States for Development of Export Infrastructure and Allied Activities (ASIDE)  Scheme was granted.  However, no funds could be allotted for the same.    (b) and (c):   Does not arise.    *****      GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2901 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 DIAMOND CUTTING AND POLISHING TRADE 2901 SHRI C.M RAMESH: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) the quantum of diamond cutting and polishing trade in the country during last three years and current year and how this can be compared with other competitive countries of world; (b) what impact Nirav Modi's scam will have on diamond cutting and polishing sector in the country; (c) whether there are strong rumours/ indications that diamond cutting trade may be shifted to Israel and Belgium in view of tightening of credit line from banks; (d) whether any consultations have been held with Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council in this regard; and (e) if so, the details thereof?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   (a) Export/import statistics of India and major competitive countries viz Israel and Belgium for cut and polished diamonds during last three calendar year is as under:Values in USD Billion Year Trade India Israel Belgium Exports 15.92 NA 11.40 Imports 2.39 NA 11.13 Exports 15.47 12.69 11.8 Imports 2.67 3.63 11.39 Exports 15.2 15.11 11.07 Imports 3.41 3.79 11.13 2017 2016 2015 SOURCE: GJEPC (b) Nirav Modi’s incident which took place beyond the legalities and outside of the approved due diligence system set by Reserve Bank of India for the banks As such, this incident has no bearing with the industry and the way it operates (c) There are some media reports on possibility of shifting diamond cutting trade to Israel and Belgium, which are based on opinion of some diamantaires not on any facts The diamond cutting and polishing industry in India has been developed in more than 50 years and today India is world leader in cutting and polishing of diamond The skills acquired by Indian karigars cannot be easily acquired by any country (d) & (e) Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council has been consulted in this regard and replies to part (b) and (c) above are based on such consultation - x     GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2902 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 TRADE DEFICIT 2902 SHRI MAJEED MEMON: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) whether it is a fact that there has been a 1.12 per cent decline in the overall exports to 23 billion US dollars with an increased trade deficit at 7.16 per cent to 37.11 billion US dollars in October, 2017 from 34.5 billion US dollars in the yearago period, if so, the reasons therefor; (b) the reasons for slump in demand of gold and the rise of oil and non-oil imports which grew by 27.89 per cent and 2.19 per cent to 9.28 billion US dollar and 27.83 billion US dollars, respectively in October, 2017; and (c) the steps taken by Government in this regard?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   (a): India’s merchandise export, import and trade deficit in October 2016 and October 2017 are as follows: Value (in Billion USD) % Growth  Category  October 2016  October 2017*  Oct‐17 over Oct‐16  Export  23.36 22.85 ‐2.18 Import  34.50 37.45 8.58 Trade Deficit  (‐)11.13 (‐)14.60 31.15 Source: DGCI&S (*Provisional) The data in the above table reflects that the overall exports declined to US$ 22.85 billion in October 2017 from US$ 23.36 billion in October 2016, registering a negative growth of 2.18% Import increased to US$ 37.45 billion in October 2017 from US$ 34.50 billion in October 2016, registering a positive growth of 8.58% The trade deficit increased to US$ 14.60 billion in October 2017 from US$ 11.13 billion in October 2016, registering a positive growth of 31.15%   Trade  deficit  depends  upon  relative  fluctuations  in  the  import  and  export  of  different  commodities due to the global and domestic factors such as demand and supply in domestic and  international markets, currency fluctuations, cost of credit, logistics costs, etc.   (b):   Details of India’s import of oil and non‐oil are as follows:    Import of  Petroleum Crude & Products and  other products     (in Billion USD)  October  October  Oct‐17 over  Commodity  2016  2017*  Oct‐16  Petroleum Crude & Products  7.26 9.31 28.20 Others Non Petroleum commodities  27.24 28.15 3.35 India's total import  34.50 37.45 8.58 Source: DGCI&S (*Provisional)   The  data  in  the  above  table  reflects  that  the  import  of  Petroleum  Crude  &  Products  increased to US$ 9.31 billion in October 2017 from US$ 7.26 billion in October 2016, registering a  positive  growth  of  28.20%.  Increase  of  import  of  Petroleum  Crude  &  Products  is  mainly  due  to  high domestic demand and increase in international prices. The marginal rise in non‐oil imports is  on  account  of  issues  like  demand  and  supply  position  of  these  products.  The  main  reason  for  slump  in  demand  of  gold  is  due  to  the  introduction  of  the  3%  GST  in  July  2017  and  tighter  regulations.   (c):   In  order  to  boost  exports  in  the  country,  the  Government  announced  a  major  relief  package  for  exporters  in  October  2017  by  extending  the  Advance  Authorization  (AA)/  Export  Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG)/ 100% EOU schemes for sourcing inputs etc. from abroad as well  as  domestic  suppliers.    During  the  mid‐term  review  of  Foreign  Trade  Policy,  export  incentives  under  Merchandise  Exports  from  India  (MEIS)  have  been  increased  by  2%      for  labour  intensive  and MSME sectors leading to additional annual incentive of Rs 4,567 crore. This was in addition to  already  announced    increase  in  MEIS  incentives  from  2%  to  4%  for  Ready‐made  Garments  and  Made Ups in the labour intensive Textiles Sector with an additional annual incentive of Rs 2,743  crore.  Further,  incentives  under  Services  Exports  from  India  Scheme  (SEIS)  have  also  been  increased by 2% leading to additional annual incentive of Rs 1,140 crore.   For  reducing  imports  and  promoting  manufacturing  in  India,  Government  has  taken  up  major initiatives under “Make in India” and improving “Ease of Doing Business”.  ***    GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2907 (H) TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 EXPORT OF GEMSTONE ORNAMENTS 2907(H) SHRI LAL SINH VADODIA: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) whether it is a fact that the export of gemstone ornaments is not showing any improvement despite the rise in the demand of Indian products in the international market; (b) if so, whether Government proposes to take any concrete step to improve the export of gemstone ornaments; and (c) if so, the details thereof and by when and if not, the reasons therefor?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   (a) No, Sir Export of gemstone ornaments has shown increasing trend in last three year and current year (b) & (c) Do not arise *****     GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2909(H) TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 PROMOTION OF AGRICULTURAL AND PROCESSED FOOD PRODUCTS 2909(H) SHRI SURENDRA SINGH NAGAR: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) whether Government has any plan to promote agricultural and processed food products; (b) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; (c) whether small and marginal farmers have been benefited by such export promotion initiatives taken by Government, if so, the details thereof for last three years; and (d) whether any steps have been taken/ considered to promote the export of agricultural and processed food products from Uttar Pradesh and whether the farmers of Uttar Pradesh have been benefited from such steps, the details thereof?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   (a & b) The promotion of exports of agricultural & processed food products is a continuous process The Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), an autonomous organisation under the administrative control of the Department of Commerce, has the mandate to promote exports of agricultural & processed food products APEDA provides assistance to the exporters of agricultural and processed food products under various component of its scheme “Agriculture & Processed Food Export promotion Scheme of APEDA” viz Infrastructure Development, Quality Development and Market Development In addition, financial assistance is available on export of various agricultural and processed food products under the Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) Assistance is also provided to exporters/state governments under various other schemes of Department of Commerce viz Trade Infrastructure for Export Scheme (TIES), Market Access Initiative (MAI) Scheme etc (c & d) Assistance under the above schemes are available to exporters The benefits incurred to farmers, including small and marginal farmers, are indirect in nature and cannot be quantified Information regarding APEDA assisted projects in Uttar Pradesh to promote export of agricultural and processed food products is at Annexure – I *********  Annexure – I APEDA ASSISTED COMMON INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS IN UTTAR PRADESH Amount Rs Lakhs S No Year Project Beneficiary Project Cost 2001-02 Wholesale Market Cum Auction Centre For Flowers at Noida, U.P Mandi Parishad 1199 350 350 completed 2006-07 Pack House & VHT for mangoes at Saharanpur U.P Mandi Parishad 917 915 915 completed 2006-07 Pack House for mangoes at Lucknow U.P Mandi Parishad 146 146 146 completed 2006-07 Pack House for mangoes at Saharanpur U.P Mandi Parishad 146 146 146 completed 2010-11 Quality Control Deptt of Lab for animal Animal products at Aligarh Husbandry 580.45 500.45 398.36 2014-15 Refrigerated park for perishable products at ICD Dadri 2043.06 1500 1200 CONCOR ****  Sanctioned Assistance APEDA Released Asst   Status ongoing completed GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2910 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 EXPORT OF DUTY FREE PRODUCTS TO US UNDER GSP 2910 SHRI NARENDRA KUMAR SWAIN: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) whether India was exporting duty free products to the US under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) which has dwindled drastically during the last year, (b) if so, the details thereof; (c) whether Government is planning to enhance exports again; and (d) if so, the details thereof?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   ( a & b) : India exports duty-free products to the United States (U.S.) under the Generalized System of Preferences [GSP] program Under the GSP programme, India’s exports to the U.S during the last three years are as follows: in US $ Billion 2015 2016 2017 Total GSP imports to the US 17.54 18.66 20.77 Exports from India to the US under GSP 4.58 4.68 5.58 Source: US Department of Commerce ( c & d): The U.S GSP is a discretionary programme which has expired on 31 December 2017 GSP bill for renewal was passed by the U.S House of Representatives and currently awaiting approval of the U.S Senate ****  GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2911 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 INVITATION TO PAKISTAN FOR WTO MINISTERIAL MEETING IN DELHI 2911 SHRI RAJEEV SHUKLA: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) whether the Union Government has extended invitation to Pakistan to participate in the informal WTO Ministerial meeting in New Delhi on 19th and 20th March, 2018; and (b) if so, the details thereof and the expected outcomes from Pakistan's participation in the meeting?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   (a) Yes, Sir (b) Around 50 member countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO), including Pakistan, were invited for the Informal WTO Ministerial Meeting to be held in New Delhi on 19 and 20 March 2018 The objective of the meeting is to provide an opportunity for a free and frank discussion on various issues relating to the WTO Such meetings provide useful inputs and impart momentum to discussions in the WTO ****      GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE) RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2913 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21st MARCH,2018 TRADE INFRASTRUCTURE FOR EXPORT SCHEME (TIES) 2913 PROF M.V RAJEEV GOWDA: Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY  be pleased to state: (a) the quantum of funds released under the Trade Infrastructure for Export Scheme (TIES) since its launch, year-wise; (b) the number of projects sanctioned under the scheme; and (c) the number of projects completed under the scheme?   ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C R CHAUDHARY)   (a): Sir, Trade Infrastructure for Export Scheme (TIES) has been launched w.e.f FY 2017-18 During FY 2017-18, a total of Rs.54.87 cr has been released till 13.3.18 (b): So far, 12 projects have been sanctioned under this Scheme (c): Since the scheme has been recently launched no project has yet reached completion ***