Govt plans to add ‘made in’ tag to imported items

In order to help customs curtail imported goods that don’t meet quality standards or infringe on trade norms, India plans to make it mandatory for all imports to carry ‘made in (country)’ tag. This measure will also enable the government to curtail large scale dumping of goods and give a fillip to local manufacturing.

The move is part of a wider plan pertaining to ‘non-preferential rules of origin’ that would apply to imports from countries that do not have a trade agreement with India. These include countries such as the US, European Union, China, New Zealand and Australia. The non-preferential rules entail policy measures like anti-dumping and countervailing duties, trade embargoes, safeguard and retaliation measures and quantitative restrictions, but also for some tariff quotas and for trade statistics. The WTO is yet to conclude harmonised non-preferential rules of origin.