No Customs duty on Readymade garments, shoes, quilt/blankets, carpets, local herbal medicines under the Indo- China Border Trade.

PRESS RELEASE RECEIVED FROM COMMERCE AND INDUSTRIES DEPARTMENT,GOVERNMENT OF SIKKIM)

In pursuance of powers delegated under the Foreign Trade Policy 2004-09, the Director General of Foreign Trade, issued Public Notice No. 110/2009-204 (RE-2010), dated 7/5/2012, adding five new items of import namely; Readymade garments, shoes, quilt/blankets, carpets, local herbal medicines under the Indo- China Border Trade. However, exemption of customs duties was not, simultaneously, done with the above public notice, as in the case of existing items of import and as a result of which the traders in the Indian side were unable to freely import these five items. This had led to apprehension among traders that these five items would attract customs duty at high rate thereby affecting the prospect of smooth Border Trade.

 Considering this fact, the Department of Commerce and Industries, took up the issue of extension of the benefit of duty exemption with the concerned Ministry of Government of India and following this the Ministry has now issued Notification No. 41/2012-CUS, dated the 14^th June 2012, duly amending notification no. 38/96-CUS dated 27/3/1996, whereby all the five items of exports are brought within the purview of exemption of duty leviable under Custom tariff Act. All the concerned stakeholders especially, the traders are advised to transact business within the approved parameters.