The Hindu Business Line : Plea to bring services sector under project import norms

A SECTION of corporate India has urged the Government to bring the services sector under the ambit of the project import regulations. This would help the sector to utilise the benefits that are already available to the manufacturing sector under these regulations, a senior industry official said.

In a recent submission to the Finance Ministry, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) said that service sector should be exempted from payment of countervailing duty on the imports made by the sector under the project import regulations.

The chamber added that the minimum limit of imports under the Rules be brought down to Rs 2 crore from the present Rs 5 crore for the services sector only. It has highlighted that several segments within the services sector may not be very capital intensive and, therefore, the minimum limit should be reduced.

Chapter 98 of the Customs Tariff deals with project imports and under tariff item 9801 several goods forming part of notified projects can be imported under the project imports at concessional rate of customs duty.

The chamber now wants the Government to notify services sector as an eligible project under sub-section (6) of tariff item 9801 of Chapter 98 covering project imports by amending the definition of industrial plant to include the services sector.

Currently, the meaning of industrial plant excludes "establishment designed to offer services of any description such as hotels, hospitals, photographic studios, photographic film processing laboratories, photocopying studios and garages and workshops".

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