J Matadee Free Trade Zone calls for policy amendments

Chennai, Feb 25 (PTI): J Matadee Free Trade Zone Pvt Ltd on Tuesday said duty tariffs must be levied based on 'Duty

Foregone Principle' as it would enable high manufacturing efficiencies.

Though special economic zones were treated as foreign territory for the purpose of law, supply of goods manufactured

by SEZs to domestic tariff area customers was subjected to full tariff, including local content value additions, chairman

of J Matadee Free Trade Zone Sunil Rallan said in a press statement here.

Duty must be levied based on 'Duty Foregone Principle', it said.

"This will enable very high manufacturing efficiencies to be achieved if new units can achieve economies of scale with

access to both Indian markets as well as exports," he was quoted as saying in the statement.

Noting that Domestic Tariff Area (DTA) customers make payments for their imports through regular banking channels,

he said, "The same products are not encouraged for supply by SEZ units to DTA customers".

"The payments made by DTA customers are not considered as being compliant with SEZ rules. This defeats the Make in India

policy as imports are being encouraged over Indian manufacturing," he said.

India has signed Free trade agreements with countries like Sri Lanka, Japan, South Korea, and ASEAN (Association of

South-East Asian Nations). "For many of the FTA partner countries, India exempts or

allows concessional rate of customs duties on listed products", he said.