A wider range of dairy products from India will soon be available to Gulf consumers, thanks to a scheme to be announced by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) to provide exporters with air freight assistance.
“Dairy products, which were previously excluded from the scheme, will now be eligible for assistance under the revised assistance programme,” the government announced. “The DGFT will notify the procedure for obtaining assistance under the revised scheme shortly.”
Simultaneously, “specified agricultural products” from India exported to Gulf markets will receive increased financial support in the form of freight assistance. Such products, which were already receiving some export financing, will now receive 50% more freight assistance if exported by sea.
However, if such agricultural exports are carried out by air, they will be eligible for a full freight subsidy. The 100% freight subsidy will be a boon for dairy products, which are perishable and must be shipped by air.
The DGFT will specify the agricultural products that are eligible for air and sea support.
The one-year scheme was first announced by the government in February 2019 in order to assist exporters in mitigating rising freight costs. It was later extended for another year, until the end of India’s fiscal year on March 31, this year.
The “Revised Transport and Marketing Assistance for Specified Agriculture Products Scheme” will now be in effect until the end of March next year, with increased rates. Exporters in this region estimate that their shipping costs have risen by 300 percent in the last year, owing in part to disruptions caused by COVID-19.
“Enhanced assistance under the revised scheme is expected to help Indian exporters of agricultural and dairy products to meet rising freight and logistics costs,” the government said.
“The revised scheme’s enhanced assistance is expected to assist Indian exporters of agricultural and dairy products in meeting rising freight and logistics costs,” the government said.