Hyderabad, Apr 5 (KNN) The Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry is working in ‘mission mode’ to simplify processes and procedures to improve ‘ease of doing business’ in India. 

Addressing an outreach programme organized by Federation of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises (FISME) in Hyderabad, on Tuesday, Damu Ravi Joint Secretary in Ministry of Commerce exhorted trade bodies to capture the problems of MSMEs and voice them to get these issues addressed through the new pan-India institutional set-up being created for trade facilitation.  

Consequent to India’s ratification of the WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation (TFA) in April 2016, the National Committee on Trade Facilitation (NCTF) has been constituted housed in the Central Board of Excise and Customs(CBEC). The NCTF, comprising of senior officials of various Ministries under chairmanship of Cabinet Secretary, aims to remove friction in doing business.

A Standing Committee on Trade Facilitation has also been formed to continuously capture and address these issues, is chaired by Commerce Secretary. FISME is member of the Committee to raise MSME issues. 

Principal Commissioner, Customs in Hyderabad B.B. Agarwal, asked exporters attending the programme to come forward with their problems and suggestions which he assured to personally monitor himself.  

During the occasion R. K. Raman, Additional Commissioner, Customs explained the Trade Facilitation Agreement and its provisions in detail and Satyan Sarda, Additional Director, DGFT explained about the various initiatives of DGFT in simplification of various compliances.

The objective of the outreach programme was to apprise MSME, exporters, importers, trade representative bodies, CHA’s and other stakeholders about the new initiatives taken up by Ministry of Commerce and Industry to bring down cost of doing business and  measures to improving process and systems in the field of trade facilitation. (KNN Bureau)