'Customs' In-Bond Manufacturing scheme can help India become a global production hub'

The Customs' In-Bond Manufacturing scheme can help in converting India into a global production hub in sectors like pharma, electronics, and chemicals, Minister of State for Finance Anurag Singh Thakur said on Friday.

The Customs' In-Bond Manufacturing scheme can help in converting India into a global production hub in sectors like pharma, electronics, and chemicals, Minister of State for Finance Anurag Singh Thakur said on Friday. The minister noted that this modified new scheme was launched last year, and the initial interest shown by the trade and industry is encouraging.

The scheme can potentially help in converting India into a global manufacturing hub in many sectors such as electronics, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, and even ancillary activities such as repair and refurbishment. It can also make India a global e-commerce hub, Thakur said. He indicated that the plan is a welcome addition to the bouquet of schemes that promote investments in India and the 'Make in India' programme while enhancing ease of doing business.

Speaking at an event organised by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) in association with US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) and Manufacturers Association for Information Technology (MAIT), the minister also said the scheme represents a very good option for businesses looking to build and manage resilient supply chains. The scheme under "In Bond Manufacturing" offers deferred import duty on capital goods as well as raw material or inputs used in bonded manufacturing. The import duty gets remitted if the finished goods are exported.

However, if the finished goods are cleared in the domestic market, the import duty on raw material used becomes payable, but without any burden of interest. The scheme also envisages a minimum physical interface with officials, and the monitoring of units under this scheme is entirely record-based and risk-based and thus non-intrusive.