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No move to cut duty on cash crops

KOCHI: Union Minister of State for Commerce Jairam Ramesh said here on Saturday that there was no proposal to reduce the import duty on cardamom, rubber, coconut and cashew in the ongoing discussions on a Free Trade Agreement with the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).

At a press conference here, the Minister said that India had offered to reduce import duty on tea from 100 per cent to 50 per cent in 2018. The country had also offered to reduce import duty on coffee and pepper to 50 per cent that year. Mr. Ramesh said there would be no compromise on the country’s position regarding import duty on tea, pepper, cardamom, rubber and coffee. He said re-plantation and rejuvenation programmes for tea, coffee, pepper, cardamom and cashew would become operational by 2018. The productivity would then go up by 20 per cent to 25 per cent, he said.

The Minister said the Union government hoped to complete negotiations with ASEAN on the agreement by March 2008. Referring to imports from Sri Lanka, he said only 2,500 tonnes of pepper could be imported from the country annually.

This agreement was reached following negotiations with Sri Lankan authorities, he said.

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