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India limits entry of 300 items via select ports

India has restricted the import of 300 consumer goods including edible oils, toys, liquor and second hand vehicles through select ports in the country, the trade office office said on its website on Monday.

Under the revised guidelines, issued by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade last week, these items could now be imported through only 11 entry points versus 211 entry points previously.

India removed import curbs on more than 700 products ranging from cars to watches as it opened its markets further to global trade from April 1 to comply with a World Trade Organisation ruling.

India's Commerce and Industry Minister Murasoli Maran, while unveiling the country's Export-Import Policy in April, had said the government would set up a "war room for tracking, collating and analysing data on 300 sensitive item" of public importance.

Prominent import items, on which entry restrictions have been introduced include cotton, sugar, liquor, cigarettes, salt and finished goods like ball-pens, pencils, crystal glass and toys.

The import of 300 consumer goods would now be allowed through the seaports of Bombay, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust in the west, Calcutta in the east, Vishhakhapatnam, Madras and Cochin in the south.

Besides airports in the metro cities of New Delhi, Bombay, Calcutta and Madras and the inland container depot in Tughlakabad near New Delhi, would also act as entry points for these items, the notification said.

Used vehicles can land only at Bombay port

Import of second-hand assembled motor cars and certain other vehicles would be allowed only through Bombay seaport, the notification said.

In a notification issued last week, the commerce ministry has identified six categories of second hand vehicles having cylinder capacity of up to 3000 cc, which will now be allowed to be brought in through the Bombay port.

The six categories include second-hand or used motorcars and jeeps.

Commerce Minister Murasoli Maran, while announcing the Exim Policy, earlier this year had said that imports of second-hand vehicle would be allowed only through the Bombay port, while import of new vehicles would be permitted thorough the Nava Sheva, Calcutta and Madras ports.

The Exim Policy had also announced a ban on imports of left hand drive vehicles and those which are more than three years old on grounds of road safety and environmental concerns.

In addition to this, the notification has also restricted imports of the remaining 300 sensitive items through 11 entry points in the country.

The commerce ministry has said that such items will, henceforth, be allowed to land only at the six seaports namely Bombay, JNPT, Calcutta, Madras, Vizag and Cochin.

Additional inputs: PTI

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