Ban on export of alcohol-based sanitiser to continue, says govt

The government on Wednesday said only alcohol-based sanitisers, which are effective against the new coronavirus, are prohibited from exports

However, the industry can now export non-alcohol based sanitisers. Amending the March 24 notification wherein exports of all kinds of sanitisers were prohibited, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said: "Only alcohol based hand sanitizers... are prohibited for exports"

There was a shortage of hand sanitisers and face masks in the market amid the coronavirus outbreak as people resorted to panic buying. According to estimates, India had exported sanitisers worth about USD 485 million in 2018-19. It was about USD 419 billion during April-January 2019-20.