Export target of $150 bn may be reached before time

New Delhi, Apr 8 (UNI) Country's exports could touch the 150 billion dollar mark much before the 2009 deadline, Director General Foreign Trade (DGFT) K T Chacko said here today.

''Exports of goods in India which has already reached 100 billion dollars could reach a figure of 150 billion dollars, much before its 2009 deadline,'' Mr Chacko said at a meeting organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

He said that he had been talking to various State Governments to tell them that exports was not solely the responsibility of the Centre and they should also take steps like reducing transaction costs and creating an infrastructure to encourage exports, in their own self interest.

''Many of the States were already taking active steps to encourage exports but the problems remained with some of the States particularly in the North,'' he said.

''We are calling for a list of the steps taken by these States who have been taking concrete steps and then this list would be circulated to other States.'' Listing some of the changes formulated in the new Foreign Trade policy, announced yesterday, Mr Chacko stated that the Focus Products and the Focus Market Schemes would provide a thrust to exports of items where there was greater scope for generating employment.

''The earlier Target plus Scheme had been found to be incompatible with WTO,'' he said.

He, however, clarified that the spread of these two scheme would not be very large.

Mr Chacko also stated that the intention of the Government in the Annual Trade Policy was to give greater flexibility to advance licensing.

He felt that the new scheme called 'Duty Free Import Authorisation Scheme', which clubs together two earlier schemes will also boost exports.

''The decision to offer the facility to import the require inputs before exports and the ability to transfer the scrip once the export obligation is over, provides the right flexibility to exporters,'' he added.

UNI SR MP BD1654