New Delhi, June 19 (KNN) The Process Plant and Machinery Association of India (PPMAI) which represents the Capital goods and Process Equipment Manufacturing and Exporting Industry in the country has expressed concern at the surge of imports especially of metals and Capital Goods from  countries including Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia and Japan with whom India has signed Free Trade Agreements (FTAs).

Chairman, Process Plant and Machinery Association of India (PPMAI) and Managing Director, Outokumpu India, Yatinder Pal Singh Suri said “The Free Trade Agreements (FTA) coupled with lack of reciprocity is adversely hurting the steel manufacturers as well as the capital goods industry FTAs are meant to increase bilateral trade.”

However, India's FTAs with Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries and Japan have only resulted in increasing our imports of metals and capital goods with either stable or declining exports leading to the rising trade deficit, he added.

Suri asserted "Capital Goods sector and also steel suppliers to Capital Goods sector have been appealing to the Department of Heavy Industries (DHI) and the government to remove Capital Goods products from FTA and also not include them in The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) which includes 10 countries of ASEAN Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.”

To help the domestic Capital Goods industry, PPMAI urges the government to immediately suspend the duty free advantage to FTA countries.

"The spirit behind FTA was to attract investment by UPA government as well as the current NDA government Instead of investments, these countries are dumping their products duty free and eroding the profitability of the Indian corporates, thereby defeating the very spirit of Make in India”, Suri pointed.

Currently instead of investing in India, these countries are killing the Indian sectors and making hay. They are being allowed to get away with all the duty free advantages for unlimited period and also not be forced to invest in India, he opined.

The DHI and Commerce and Steel ministry must find a way to stop this injury to Indian steel and capital goods manufacturers to ensure that the domestic sector becomes healthy and also globally competitive, Suri added.

Despite several steps taken by Government including imposing anti-dumping duties, countervailing duties, quality control and anti-circumvention measures but the problem of surge in imports especially stainless steel, finished capital goods and other metals persists, said Chairman of PPMAI.