DPIIT Secretary: Industry’s call for tariff hikes during FTA negotiations must be questioned

Secretary with the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Amardeep Singh Bhatia has called for a need to question requests from domestic industry to hike tariffs on imports at a time when India is looking to sign Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with more and more countries and trading blocs.

Speaking at the CII Global Inclusive Finance Summit, the Secretary pointed out that weighted tariffs are now down to nearly the global average and the domestic industry needs to look at its competitiveness as India aims to become an important part of the global value chain.

Noting variance in EODB (Ease of Doing Business) across states, Bhatia said what needs to be done is known but field level implementation needs to be worked upon, as he pointed to plans to conduct consultations on usage of reclaimed land.

With 45% of startups emerging beyond metro cities, he said that startups can address problem statements through partnerships and collaborations. He stressed on the need for creation of more industrial land for development via land pooling initiatives and the need for infrastructure optimisation.

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