The Hindu Business Line : Govt formulates scheme to help exporters hedge

Chennai June 3 It is not quite clear what exactly the Ministry of Commerce has in mind, but the Commerce Secretary, Mr G.K. Pillai, is talking in terms of the Government giving Indian exporters some help in hedging against the appreciation of the rupee.

"You will get to know the details in a few weeks," Mr Pillai told journalists, in an informal chat here on Saturday, when asked if the rising rupee would affect exports.

The Indian rupee has appreciated 14 per cent since last July, to about Rs 40.60 a dollar.

Right now, the Government is engaged in doing a "micro analysis" of `which sectors are affected by how much' because of the appreciation of the rupee — mainly against the US dollar, but also against all major currencies.

`Micro analysis'

The study is expected to be completed before the end of this month after which the Government would formulate a scheme to help the more affected exporters.

Answering a question, Mr Pillai said that such a measure had never been taken before.

The exporting community is not also not quite aware of what scheme the Government has in mind. Mr T. Vasu, Chairman, Export Promotion Council for EOUs & SEZ Units, told Business Line that the Council was given to understand that the Government was working out a scheme but was not familiar with the details.

The council requested the Government to provide some "support" at least to those exporters whose costs are all in rupees.

To the request made in an Open House in Ludhiana in early May, the Commerce Secretary is said to have replied in the affirmative.

Mr Pillai said that at least 450 special economic zones would come up in the country without facing any issues over land acquisition.

450 SEZS WITHOUT LAND PROBLEM

Over 110 have been approved. For more than 300 project proposals, land has already been acquired. Another 200-odd applicants have said that they would acquire the land themselves, Mr Pillai said.

He said that industrial development bodies of several state governments were sitting with huge land banks. For example, the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation had about 70,000 hectares of land near Vidarbha, he pointed out.

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