Traders compete for export incentives, tax breaks

Industries that focus on both exports and imports have made representations to finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman seeking sops, including duty drawbacks, an extension on tax breaks for export-oriented special economic zones (SEZs) and simpler rules on international e-commerce shipping.

 “In light of the current economic condition and increasing global competitiveness, extending the sunset clause of the IT Act for SEZs will give a big boost," Diwakar Nigam, chairman and managing director of Newgen Software, said in an interview. “The government can further incentivize organizations for creating software intellectual property through tax exemption on IT exports."

“We have asked the government for export incentives in the form of a duty drawback," said Manish Kharbanda, adviser-corporate affairs at Jindal Steel and Power Ltd, and president of Pellet Manufacturers Association of India.

“Earlier, under export promotion schemes, iron pellet makers received duty drawbacks of 2.5-3%. We want this to be restored as this will align with the government’s Make in India policy."

Iron-ore pellet makers export 10-11% of their production, Kharbanda said. “There’s been a lot of talk on imposing an export duty on pellets, and we have explained that this is counter-productive as the domestic demand for pellets is not very high. The industry is still functioning at around 80