Page 489 - ES 2020-21_Volume-1-2 [28-01-21]

116 Economic Survey 2020-21 Volume 2

Management for clearance of goods (Article 7.4), etc. Further, the transparency notifications
covering information on import and export procedures, enquiry points, single windows etc.,
have also been notified in April, 2019, reflecting India’s commitment towards facilitation of
trade with an emphasis to transparency and openness. Further various regulatory relaxation
measures were extended for facilitating trade during COVID-19, which include 24X7 clearance,
dedicated single window, condonation of delay in filing import declarations, waiver of late
filing fees, undertakings instead of bond, etc. India has been at the forefront in undertaking
initiatives aimed at maximizing predictability and automation in trade, reflecting in the consistent
improvement on the United Nation’s Global Survey on Digital and Sustainable Trade.

Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP)
3.37 India's various export promotion schemes including Merchandise Exports from India Scheme
(MEIS), were challenged by the United States in WTO in early 2018. The final report of the WTO
panel observed that MEIS is a "prohibited subsidy" and needs to be withdrawn, against which an
appeal has been filed by India. In order to continue supporting the industry and to eliminate any
uncertainty amongst the exporting community, Government has rolled out a new WTO compliant
scheme, namely Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP), for all export
goods with effect from 1 January, 2021.
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3.38 Under this Scheme, duties and taxes levied at the Central, State and local levels, such
as electricity duties and VAT on fuel used for transportation, which are not getting exempted
or refunded under any other existing mechanism will be refunded to exporters in their ledger
account with Customs. The credits can be used to pay basic customs duty on imported goods or
transferred to other importers – facilitating ease of transactions for exports. The RoDTEP rates
would be notified by the Department of Commerce.

Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme
3.39 In order to boost domestic manufacturing and exports, the Production-Linked Incentive
(PLI) scheme with an outlay of `1.46 lakh crore has been introduced. This Scheme aims to give
incentive to companies on incremental sales from products manufactured in domestic units. The
ten-identified champion sectors under PLI scheme are advanced chemistry cell (ACC) battery
(approved financial outlay over a five year period of `18,100 crore), electronic/technology
products (`5,000 crore), automobile and auto component (`57,042 crore), pharmaceuticals drugs
(`15,000 crore), telecom and networking products (`12,195 crore), textile products (`10,683
crore), food products (`10,900 crore), high efficiency solar photovoltaic modules (`4,500 crore),
white goods (ACs and LEDs) (`6,238 crore) and specialty steel (`6,322 crore). These are in
addition to the already notified PLI schemes for mobile manufacturing and specified electronic
components (`40,951 crore), critical Key Starting materials/ Drug Intermediaries and Active
Pharmaceutical Ingredients (`6,940 crore) and manufacturing of medical devices (`7420 crore).
3.40 The scheme is expected to make Indian manufacturers in these ten sectors globally
competitive, attract investment in the areas of core competency and cutting-edge technology;
ensure efficiencies; create economies of scale; establish backward linkages with MSMEs;
enhance exports and make India an integral part of the global supply chain. It also incentivizes
global, capital-rich companies to set up capacities in India. Growth in production and
exports of industrial goods will greatly expose the Indian industry to foreign competition