Q.Explain the main objectives and instruments of India's Foreign Trade (Export-Import) Policy.

India's Foreign Trade Policy is the government's rulebook for regulating and promoting exports and imports.

India's Foreign Trade Policy (FTP), earlier known as the Export-Import (EXIM) Policy, is framed by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (through the Directorate General of Foreign Trade) to regulate and promote India's trade with the rest of the world.

Main objectives:

1. Boost export competitiveness and diversify India's export basket and markets.
2. Simplify procedures and cut transaction costs/time for exporters and importers (ease of doing business in trade).
3. Promote priority sectors (electronics, pharmaceuticals, textiles, agro-products) and emerging areas.
4. Support Special Economic Zones (SEZs) and Export Oriented Units (EOUs) through fiscal and procedural incentives.
5. Generate employment, particularly in labour-intensive export industries.
6. Keep India's trade regime aligned with its WTO commitments.

Key instruments:

• Duty exemption/remission schemes — duty-free import of inputs used in export production.
• Export promotion councils for specific industries, assisting with market information and representation abroad.
• Special Economic Zones (SEZs) — zones with tax and regulatory concessions to encourage export-oriented production. …