India Export Boost: High Capex, Railway Corridors & Seafood Focus

New Delhi, Feb 6 (PTI) Announcements of measures in the interim Budget such as high capex, three major economic railway corridors, and a target to increase seafood exports would help boost the country's overall outbound shipments, exporters say.

The government has proposed to step up the implementation of Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) by enhancing aquaculture productivity from existing 3 tonne to 5 tonne per hectare, and setting up five integrated aqua parks.

CII National Committee on Exports and Imports Chairman Sanjay Budhia said that the announcement of a Rs 1 lakh crore corpus for innovation with a 50-year interest-free loan for long-term financing, refinancing at no or nil interest rates will encourage the private sector to scale up R&D and innovation in sunrise domains and new age technologies.

"There is a reinforcement of continued thrust on exports. Announcement of three economic corridors, multi-modal connectivity, emphasis on additional airports, etc. and doubling the target of seafood export to Rs 1 lakh crore clearly reiterate the importance of our international trade as an engine of growth," Budhia, who is also the managing director of Patton Group, said.

Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) President (Officiate) Israr Ahmed said that focus on investment in modern infrastructure, including digital, will help increase logistics efficiency for the industry.

"Allocation of Rs 1 lakh crore for R&D and innovation will encourage the private sector to scale up their research and innovation significantly in sunrise sectors of the trade and industry," Ahmed said.

He added that the capital expenditure of Rs 11.1 lakh crore will have a significant impact on the country's markets enhancing various projects, thereby leading to increased business and employment opportunities.

Sharing similar views, Tiruppur Exporters Association (TEA) Chairman A Sakthivel said that the allocation of funds for schemes like PM MITRA would help promote domestic manufacturing.

"There is no change in the rates of direct and indirect taxes in the interim Budget, including import duties, which gives a sense of balance," he said.

The country's merchandise exports during April-December this fiscal dipped by 5.7 per cent to USD 317.12 billion.

Imports contracted by 7.93 per cent to USD 505.15 billion, leaving a trade deficit of USD 188.02 billion in the first three quarters as against USD 212.34 billion in April-December 2022.