The apex body controlling exports of marine products from India has launched a sea freight assistance scheme aimed at making India a major seafood processor during the 11th Five-Year Plan period.
The Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) has launched the scheme to increase exports of value-added marine products from India and attract raw marine products from other countries for re-processing and value-addition.
Other objectives of the scheme are better use of the installed processing capacity and increasing exports of value-added products.
Under the scheme, 100 per cent freight assistance of the differential per container for the first three years and 50 per cent for the fourth year will be given to units for imports, provided there is at least 25 per cent value-addition. For this, freight rates applicable in India and China will be taken into account. The assistance will not exceed 50 per cent of the total freight from India. The maximum assistance will be Rs 1 crore per year per exporter.
The assistance for exports of to the European Union, US, Japan and other countries aims to offset the adverse weight volume ratio of the value-added products in containers as well as freight differences.
The scheme has already been implemented from September 11 and will be in force till the end of the 11th Five-Year Plan period. The assistance will not be granted to processors/exporters for undertaking works for overseas or domestic companies.
MPEDA said that though India had a processing capacity of over 14,000 tonnes per day and had more than 200 EU-approved processing units, the shortage of raw materials had led to under-utilisation of capacity. Only 20 per cent of the installed capacity is being utilised at present.
Another major handicap for the export sector is the low percentage of value-added products in the export basket.
India’ share of value-added products in the total seafood exports of Rs 8607.94 crore in 2008-09 was less than 10 per cent. The main constraint faced by the Indian exporters in importing raw material and exporting value-added products is the high sea freight charges, say industry sources.
