In an attempt to reduce the reliance on China, the Indian government is reportedly planning to increase customs duty on almost 20 product segments. The products include laptops, cameras, textiles, and aluminum goods.
According to a new TOI report citing sources familiar with the matter, the issue is now before the finance ministry. The report suggests that the ministry had rejected the proposal from commerce and industry ministry before. This time around, the government may proceed further and notify tariff hikes.
“It is not a China-specific duty action but an overall increase in customs duty, although the idea is to focus on products which are coming in large volumes from China,” one of the officers told TOI.
“Even if it means higher costs, we can’t be doing business with them,” another officer was quoted as saying by TOI. The government, however, has not finalized the decision so far.
The news comes just a few days after the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) amended a policy that restricts imports of TV sets from other countries like China, Vietnam, and Malaysia. Brands will now have to seek a relevant license from the government for imports.
The move is said to be one of the responses for the Ladakh clashes in which 20 Indian soldiers lost their lives. In July, the government banned 52 Chinese apps and even warned the companies to avoid operating the banned apps in India. The latest apps to get hit by the ban hammer are Chinese micro-blogging platform Weibo and search engine Baidu.
