Lok Sabha Question No. 5048 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-04-01
Subject: Bharat Trade Net and Export Promotion Mission
Ministry: COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
Asked by: Shri Yaduveer Wadiyar, Shri Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, Smt. Kamaljeet Sehrawat

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE)

## LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5048 ANSWERED ON 01/04/2025

## BHARAT TRADE NET AND EXPORT PROMOTION MISSION

## 5048.    SHRI YADUVEER WADIYAR:

SMT. KAMALJEET SEHRAWAT:

SHRI RAMVIR SINGH BIDHURI:

Will the Minister of COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY ( )  be  pleased  to state:

- (a) the extent to which the exporters are likely to be benefited from the initiatives like Bharat Trade Net and Export Promotion Mission, particularly in engineering sector;
- (b) the specific strategy being formulated by the Government for providing security to Indian exporters from the growing global conservative trade policy;
- (c) the  plan  of  the  Government  for  providing  assistance  to  bail  MSME  exporters  out  of financial and logistic challenges;
- (d) whether the Government has signed new trade agreements or promote partnerships for expansion of engineering export market of India; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

( )

THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI JITIN PRASADA)

- (a) The  Export  Promotion  Mission  is  being  coordinated  by  the  Department  of  Commerce along with the Ministry of MSME and Ministry of Finance. The initiative is intended to address challenges related to export credit accessibility, factoring for cross-border trade, and overcoming non-tariff barriers, with a particular focus on supporting MSMEs. Deliberations for the Mission

have  included  financial  institutions  such  as  EXIM  Bank,  ECGC,  SIDBI,  CGTMSE,  NCGTC, and representatives of Export Promotion Councils and Commodity Boards.

Simultaneously, the BharatTradeNet (BTN) initiative is expected to support the digitalization of trade documents, facilitate seamless data exchange, and improve transparency in trade finance mechanisms.  It  would  help  exporters,  especially  MSMEs,  in  reducing  procedural  bottlenecks, improving documentation efficiency and reducing compliance-related delays.

(b) To  address  growing  global  conservative  trade  policy,  the  Government  is  adopting multipronged strategy to safeguard Indian exporters. These include expanding market access and diversifying  export  destinations,  addressing  tariff  and  non-tariff  barriers  through  bilateral  and multilateral engagements, and negotiating Free Trade Agreements to create new  trade opportunities.  Export  assistance  under  various  schemes  and  digital  trade  facilitation  initiatives are  also  being  strengthened  to  enhance  competitiveness.  Export  performance  is  continuously monitored,  and  corrective  measures  are  implemented  in  coordination  with  Export  Promotion Councils, Commodity Boards, and Indian Missions abroad to mitigate adverse impacts on Indian exporters.

(c) To help MSME exporters overcome financial and logistical challenges, the Government is implementing a range of initiatives, which include:

(i) The Ministry of MSME is implementing the International Cooperation (IC) Scheme to support the international growth of MSMEs. Under this scheme, financial assistance is provided on  a  reimbursement  basis  to  eligible  Central  and  State  Government  organizations,  as  well  as Industry Associations. The assistance facilitates MSME participation in international exhibitions, fairs, and buyer-seller meets held abroad. It also supports organizing international conferences, seminars, and workshops in India, aimed at promoting technology upgradation, modernization, and fostering joint ventures. A new component of IC Scheme namely Capacity Building of First Time  Exporters  (CBFTE)  has  been  launched  in  June  2022,  under  which  reimbursement  is provided to new  Micro  and  Small Enterprises (MSE)  exporters for costs incurred on Registration-cum-Membership Certification (RCMC) with Export Promotion Councils (EPCs), Export Insurance Premium and Testing & Quality Certification for exports.

(ii) Other  schemes/programmes  implemented  by  the  Ministry  of  MSME  include  Prime Minister's Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), Credit Guarantee Scheme (CGTMSE),  Micro  &  Small  Enterprises  -  Cluster  Development  Programme  (MSE-CDP), SFURTI, ZED, Incubator, LEAN, IPR, Procurement and Marketing Scheme (PMS) which assist MSMEs in boosting their export competitiveness.

(iii) Establishment of 65 Export Facilitation Centres (EFCs) across the country with an aim to provide requisite mentoring and handholding support to MSMEs in exporting their products and services to foreign markets.

(iv) The Interest Equalization Scheme on pre- and post-shipment rupee export credit has been extended to the MSME Sector up to December 31, 2024.

(v)  Assistance  is  being  provided  through  several  schemes  to  promote  exports,  namely,  Trade Infrastructure for Export Scheme (TIES) and Market Access Initiatives (MAI) Scheme.

(vi) The Rebate of State and Central Levies and Taxes (RoSCTL) Scheme to promote export of certain labour-oriented items of textile sector has been implemented since March 07, 2019.

(vii) Remission  of  Duties  and  Taxes  on  Exported  Products  (RoDTEP)  scheme  has  been implemented since January 01, 2021. Currently, 10,642 tariff lines (8-digit ITC(HS) Codes) are covered under this Scheme. The budget allocation for RoDTEP Scheme for the current financial year 2024-25 is Rs. 16,575 crores. The benefits of the RoDTEP scheme have been extended to exports from Domestic Tariff Area (DTA) units till September 30, 2025.

(viii) A Common Digital Platform for Certificate of Origin has been launched to facilitate trade and increase Free Trade Agreement (FTA) utilization by exporters.

(ix) Districts as Export Hubs initiative had been launched by identifying products with export potential  in  each  district,  addressing  bottlenecks  for  exporting  these  products  and  supporting local exporters/manufacturers to generate employment in the district.

(x) The  government  has  launched  the  Trade  Connect  e-Platform  as  an  information  and intermediation  platform  for  international  trade  bringing  together  Indian  Missions  Abroad  and officials  from  Department  of  Commerce  and  other  organizations  to  provide  comprehensive services for MSME exporters.

(xi) To  address  the  logistical  challenges  faced  by  MSME  exporters,  the  Government  has undertaken a series of strategic interventions. Notably, the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan was launched to enhance infrastructure  integration  and  improve  the  efficiency  of  the  logistics ecosystem.  The  GatiShakti  platform  brings  together  key  Ministries,  including  Railways  and Roadways,  for  integrated  planning  and  coordinated  implementation  of  infrastructure  projects. The  emphasis  is  on  multimodal  connectivity,  which  aims  to  provide  seamless  and  efficient movement of goods, services, and people across modes of transport. This can potentially ease the transit and delivery timelines for MSME exporters.

(d) & (e) India  has  recently  signed  trade  agreements  with  United  Arab  Emirates  (UAE), Australia and European Free Trade Association (EFTA). In all these trade agreements, India has been  granted  preferential  benefits  to  enhance  market  access  for  engineering  goods.  Tariff schedules offered by the partner countries to India for the engineering goods and allied sectors are  available  on  the  website  of  the  Department  of  Commerce.  These  agreements  also  include provisions on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) to promote mutual understanding of each sides' standards, technical regulations, and conformity assessment procedures and measures to enhance transparency. Additionally, institutional mechanisms have been set up under these agreements to address non-technical barriers, thereby facilitating smoother and more effective access to these export markets for Indian engineering goods.

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