Bharat informed the World Trade
Organisation or WTO that it does not plan to expand the use of import management
systems for computers, laptops and other IT hardware products beyond the listed
products.
Bharat said the reason behind this move is
to “protect public morals, quota administration, regulate imports of arms,
ammunition or fissionable materials and safeguard national security”.
New Delhi said industry experts were
consulted before the notification issued on August 3, and a transition period
of three months was provided till October 31, wherein further feedbacks were
sought from trade and industry.
Bharat declared its decision to the WTO
after US, China, South Korea, and Taiwan raised concerns on the issue at the
WTO.
Taiwan asked about the objective of this
policy, while Beijing asked Bharat to elucidate its changing measures and the
purpose of this policy.
South Korea termed the measure as
inconsistent with the WTO rules and said it could create unnecessary trade
barriers.
US said the measure forces its firms to
think twice about doing business in Bharat, and it would also impact its
exports. It also said the decision is creating uncertainty for exporters and
downstream users.
Bharat also informed the WTO that an
additional notification was issued on October 19, when a new system of
authorisation for imports of laptops, tablets and personal computers, aiming to
monitor shipments of such hardware, was launched.
The new import management system came
into force on November 1. On being asked about the time frame of the monitoring
phase and if India will delay its full implementation by then, India said there
is no such proposal as of date.
“The present system has been put in
place to manage and monitor import of specified IT hardware goods to ensure
supply chain resilience and address national security concerns,” Bharat told
the WTO.
In October, Bharat launched a new system
of authorisation for import of laptops, tablets, computers and other hardware
to monitor their shipments, which came into force from November 1.
NE Watch Desk
