Ahead of Assembly polls, Union govt. hikes minimum import price of arecanut from ₹251 a kg to ₹351 a kg

MANGALURU In some relief to arecanut growers ahead of the Assembly elections in the State, the Union

In some relief to arecanut growers ahead of the Assembly elections in the State, the Union government on Tuesday hiked the minimum import price of arecanut from ₹251 a kg to ₹351 a kg.

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), Department of Commerce, under the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry issued a notification to this effect by making an amendment to the import policy.

The government said: “The minimum import price imposed on tariff lines under 080280 (that is whole, split, ground and other category of arecanuts) is revised from ₹251 a kg to ₹351 a kg. The import policy of supari under ITC HS (21069030) (betelnut product known as supari) is revised from ‘free’ to ‘prohibited’ and import shall be free if CIF (cost, insurance and freight) value is ₹351 or above per kg. The given conditions shall not be applicable for imports by 100% export oriented units and units in the Special Economic Zones subject to the condition that no DTA (domestic tariff area) sale is allowed.”  

The hike is likely to help the domestic market maintain stability. The stakeholders of arecanut, comprising Central Arecanut and Cocoa Marketing and Processing Cooperative (CAMPCO) Ltd., other cooperative societies, and the All-India Areca Growers’ Association had been demanding the government to fix the minimum import price at ₹351 a kg.

With the new notification they expect further reduction in the influx of import of arecanut to the domestic market.

Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Anupriya Patel, while replying to questions by Nalin Kumar Kateel, Member of Parliament, had told the Lok Sabha on February 8 that the condition of a minimum import price on arecanut had been imposed “to restrict the unabated import and to prevent the entry of inferior arecanut into the domestic market and destabilization of the domestic prices.”

The DGFT had earlier hiked the minimum import price on arecanut to ₹251 a kg from ₹162 a kg on January 17, 2017.