States to get individual export promotion councils: Modi

Voices concern over large number of stalled SEZ projects, says high-level team to review the problem

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday said that the state governments will soon be allowed to form their own export promotion councils to give a boost to the country's exports.

According to Modi, the central government had recently convened a meeting with states to identify the bottlenecks in exports and states would be given the right to set up their own Export Promotion Councils to drive foreign trade at the local level

"We at the Centre have to team up with the state governments for export promotion and the states should also work hard individually to help drive exports," Modi said, while addressing a gathering after laying the foundation stone of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust SEZ (special economic zone) here.

Currently, central government through Commerce and Industry Ministry helps to facilitate schemes for promotion of exports.

"Unless the states and the centre work together, we cannot achieve new heights in exports," Modi said.

Modi voiced concern over the large number of stalled SEZ projects and said that a high-level team has been constituted to review the problem.

"In the PMO (Prime Ministers' Office), there is a special team to look into why SEZs are not finding takers and to suggest solutions for the benefit of the entire country," Modi said.