High-level panel on trade facilitation holds meeting

The first meeting of a high-level committee headed by Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha to discuss ways for developing the roadmap for implementation of WTO's trade facilitation agreement was held today.
Addressing the meeting of National Committee on Trade Facilitation (NCTF) here, Sinha stressed on the need to continuously move towards higher standards of excellence so that the trade eco-system becomes more growth oriented.
The NCTF is a mandatory requirement under the WTOs Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA).
TFA contains provisions for expediting the movement, release and clearance of goods, including goods in transit. It also sets out measures for effective cooperation between customs and other appropriate authorities on trade facilitation and customs compliance issues.

Sinha stated that since the TFA may become a binding agreement shortly, India had to be in a state of readiness, especially for the category 'A' commitments.
Rules in this category have to be immediately implemented after the agreement comes into force.

The cabinet secretary summed-up the significant areas of the agreement as simplification of procedures, reduction in time and cost, augmentation of infrastructure and greater use of technology.
He also decided that in the initial phase, the NCTF and the Steering Committee, may meet more frequently to firm- up the contours of TFA implementation plan.
The steering committee, working under NCTF, will be co- chaired by the Revenue and the Commerce Secretary.

It was decided that the next meeting of the NCTF will take place in December and the Steering Committee will meet twice before that to come-up with specific goals for TFA implementation.
The meeting was attended by all the 24 members of which included secretaries of various ministries/departments like Home, Shipping, Civil Aviation as well FICCI and CII.
Speaking at the meeting, CBEC Chairman Najib Shah said that TFA on customs side is as important as GST in indirect tax reform.
Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia spoke about the need to do away with the multiplicity of committees looking at trade facilitation at various levels.

He suggested that the NCTF which was now the high level national body for same could subsume other such committees and become a uniform voice on these issues, the statement said. .
The Department of Commerce has already got a baseline study done by the Centre for WTO Studies about the gap analysis status in India viz-a-viz the TFA.
The commerce secretary emphasized about the need for inter ministerial coordination which was seen as being crucial for the successful working of the NCTF.