By OUR STAFF REPORTER
DEHRADUN, 18 Feb: An industry interactive session for one hour with Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Dr Suresh Prabhu was organised by PHD Chamber and other industry bodies across the country through Video-Conferencing, today.
The session focused on discussing the issues concerning manufacturers, exporters and importers with the Commerce Minister. The minister spoke about the focus of the ministry on involving industry more to influence the process of planning and policy making to strengthen the Government’s facilitating role. He also mentioned various initiatives taken keeping in view inclusive growth and enabling development at the grassroots levels. He also talked about the ministry’s determination to ensure ease of doing business.
Virendra Kalra, Chairman, Uttarakhand State Chapter of PHD Chamber, said it was a unique initiative and the efforts were appreciated. Such Initiatives needed to be regularly held at fixed intervals at various levels of the bureaucracy.
Anil Taneja, Regional Director, PHDCCI, stated that the problems brought out in such programmes would carry enough weight provided the same were subsequently monitored though more programmes and follow-ups.
Vijendra Chauhan, Chairman, IT Taskforce of PHDCCI Uttarakhand, said that the IT exports services had great potential to be based out of Uttarakhand, although there were certain issues at the national level that needed to be addressed by the Union Government. The IT Export services were comparable to the export of tangible goods and the exporters had to comply by filing SOFTEX forms to RBI through STPI. This was a tedious, time consuming process and involved a lot of expenditure. STPI further sends this information to the RBI and RBI sends it to the Authorised Dealer (Bank) to regularise the exports. The Bank once again charged the exporter a hefty sum of money to regularise these exports. This whole process was a big hurdle in the promotion of exports through IT. He stated that a communication would be sent to the minister in this respect.
The Executive Committee of Bhagwanpur Industrial Association was represented by Gautam Kapoor. A representation on the long pending issue of Bhagwanpur Industrial Estate running without any drainage system causing major problems to more than 300 units with more than Rs 5000 crore investment, had been submitted to the ministry. During Udyog Bandhu Meetings, a solution was proposed and accepted by the state administration and NHAI authorities, that the drainage system along with the widening of NH73 would be constructed for the Bhagwanpur Industrial Estate. A service lane for serving the estate was also proposed and accepted. None of the above solutions had been actually incorporated in the NHAI plans for NH73 as yet.
An impending issue arising out of the considerable gaps in Basic Customs Duty structure of footwear industry in terms of cheaper imports from Bangladesh and ASEAN Countries (Vietnam, Indonesia, etc.), resulting in the negative impact on balance of payments due to reduced manufacturing activity and underutilisation of the manufacturing capacity, was also submitted by PHD Chamber on the occasion.
Taneja stated that these and more such issues were submitted on the occasion and would be duly followed up by PHD Chamber for a proper solution.
