Ministry of Commerce and Industry

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry administers two departments,

• Department of Commerce
  • 1. The department is entrusted with formulating and implementing the foreign trade policy and responsibilities relating to multilateral and bilateral commercial relations, state trading, export promotion measures, and development and regulation of certain export oriented industries and commodities.
    2. The Department is also entrusted with responsibilities relating to multilateral and bilateral commercial relations, Special Economic Zones, state trading, export promotion and trade facilitation, and development and regulation of certain export oriented industries and commodities.

• Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade (formerly Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion)
  • 1. This department of Ministry of Commerce and Industry is responsible for formulation and implementation of promotional and developmental measures for growth of the industrial sector, keeping in view the national priorities and socio-economic objectives.
    2. Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion is responsible for the overall Industrial Policy.
    3. It is also responsible for facilitating and increasing the FDI flows to the country.
    4. It is also responsible to calculate WPI (I.e. Wholesale Price Index).

START UP INDIA

• • A flagship initiative launched in 2016 under Ministry of Commerce and Industry to build a strong ecosystem for fostering entrepreneurship, nurturing innovation, driving sustainable economic growth & generating large-scale employment opportunities.

Objectives

• • To build a strong eco-system for nurturing innovation and startups in the country.

Salient features

• • The Action Plan is based on three pillars – Simplification and handholding, funding support and incentives, industry-academia partnership and incubation. Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal trade (DPI&IT) (formerly DIPP) is the implementing agency.
  • Simplification and Handholding:
    • • Simple Compliance Regime for startups based on Self-certification
      • Launch of Mobile app and Portal for compliance and information exchange
      • Startup India Hub to handhold startups during various phases of their development.
      • Legal support and fast-tracking patent examination at reduced costs
      • Relaxed norms of public procurement for startups
      • Faster exit for startups
  • Funding support and Incentives
    • • Providing funding support through a Fund of Funds at Small Industries Development Bank of India with a corpus of Rupees 10,000 crore
      • Credit guarantee fund for startups through Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) with a Corpus of Rs.500 crore per year for the next four years
      • Tax exemption on capital gains invested in Fund of Funds
      • Tax exemption to startups for 3 years
  • Industry-Academia Partnership and Incubation
    • • Organizing Startup Fests to showcase innovations and providing collaboration platforms
      • Launch of Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) with Self –Employment and Talent Utilization (SETU) Program of NITI Aayog
      • Harnessing private sector expertise for setting up incubators
      • Setting up of 7 new research parks modelled on the Research Park at IIT Madras
      • Annual Incubator Grand Challenge to promote good practices among incubators.
  • Definition of start-up broadened:
    • • An eligible start-up would be one that is registered with the government and has been incorporated for less than 10 years (from previous 7 years), and has a turnover that has not exceeded ₹100 crore over (earlier 25 years) that period.
      • Working towards Innovation, development or improvement of products, processes or services Or, if it has a scalable business model with a high potential of employment generation or wealth creation.

 

STARTUP INDIA VIRTUAL HUB

• • • Launched In 2017, the Hub is an online platform for all stakeholders of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in India to discover, connect and engage with each other ie. Startups, investors, funds, mentors, academia, incubators, accelerators, corporates, Government bodies and more.
    • Objective – to provide a single point of contact for entire Startup Ecosystem to resolve the problem of information asymmetry and lack of access to knowledge, tools, & expertise, especially in the nascent ecosystems across Tier II and Ill towns.

STARTUP ACADEMIA ALLIANCE PROGRAMME

• • • It is a unique mentorship opportunity between academic scholars and startups working in similar domains.
    • It aims to reduce the gap between scientific research and its industrial applications in order to increase the efficacy of these technologies and to widen their impact.

 

MAKE IN INDIA

Objectives

• • To promote India as an important investment destination and a global hub in manufacturing, design and innovation.

Salient features

• • The “Make in India” initiative is based on four pillars –
    1. 1. New Processes – It recognizes ‘ease of doing business’ as the single most important factor to promote entrepreneurship.
       2. New Infrastructure – Government intends to develop industrial corridors and smart cities, create world class infrastructure with state-of-the-art technology and high-speed communication. Innovation and research activities are supported through a fast paced registration system and improved infrastructure for IPR (intellectual property right) registration.
       3. New Sectors – FDI has been opened up in Defence Production, Insurance, Medical Devices, Construction and Railway infrastructure in a big way.
       4. New Mind-set – In order to partner with industry in economic development of the country Government shall act as a facilitator and not a regulator. An Investor Facilitation Cell (IFC) dedicated for the Make in India campaign was formed in 2014 with an objective to assist investors in seeking regulatory approvals, hand-holding services through the pre-investment phase, execution and after-care support.

Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal trade (DPI&IT) coordinates action plans for 15 manufacturing sectors while Department of Commerce coordinates 12 service sectors.

 

TRADE INFRASTRUCTURE FOR EXPORT SCHEME (TIES)

• • Launched in 2017 under Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Objectives

• • To enhance export competitiveness by bridging gaps in export infrastructure, creating focused export infrastructure, first mile and last mile connectivity for export-oriented projects and addressing quality and certification measures.

Salient features

• • It would provide financial assistance for setting up and upgradation of existing infrastructure with export linkages like border haats, cold chains, dry ports etc.
  • The Central and State Agencies, including Export Promotion Councils, Commodities Boards, SEZ Authorities and Apex Trade Bodies recognised under the EXIM policy of Government of India; are eligible for financial support under this scheme.
  • The Central Government funding will be in the form of grant-in-aid, normally not more than the equity being put in by the implementing agency or 50% of the total equity in the project. (In case of projects located in North Eastern States and Himalayan States including J&K, this grant can be upto 80% of the total equity).

 

GOVERNMENT E-MARKETPLACE (GEM)

• • GEM is a state-of-the-art online marketplace for procurement of common use goods & services by government departments.
  • Founded in 2016, as a Section 8 company.

Objectives

• • To facilitate procurement of goods and services by various Central and State Government Ministries / Departments, Central & State Public Undertakings (CPSUs & SPSUs), Autonomous institutions and Local bodies through the on line platform for transparency and to eliminate corruption.

Developed by

• • Directorate General of Supplies and Disposals (DGS&D) with technical support of NeGD (MeitY)

Salient features

• • It is a one stop portal (100 % government owned company) to facilitate online procurement of common use Goods & Services required by various Government Departments / Organizations / PSUs.
  • It aims to enhance transparency, efficiency and speed in public procurement.
  • It provides the tools of e-bidding, reverse e-auction and demand aggregation to facilitate the government users achieve the best value for their money.
  • It is a completely paperless, cashless and system driven e-market place that enables procurement of common use goods and services with minimal human interface.
  • The purchases through GeM by Government users have been authorized and made mandatory by Ministry of Finance.
  • It is being directly monitored by the PMO office.
  • Directorate General of Supplies & Disposal (DGS&D) owns and operates the portal.
  • GeM 3.0 was announced which would offer standardised and enriched catalogue management, powerful search engine, real time price comparison, user rating, advanced MIS and analytics.

Benefits of GeM

• • Transparency – as it eliminates human interface in vendor registration, order placement and payment processing with electronic notifications and cashless payments.
  • Efficiency – Ensures speed of purchases with price reasonability.
  • Secure and safe – All documents are e-signed, antecedents of sellers verified by third-party assessment, strengthening due diligence.
  • Support Make in India – GeM has filters which are Preferential Market Access (PMA) compliant for selecting goods which are manufactured by Small Scale Industries (551).
  • Savings to the government – Resulting from the transparency, efficiency, demand aggregation and ease of use of GeM.
  • Support to Good Governance initiatives – GeM is in sync with objective of ‘Minimum Government, Maximum Governance’ and Digital India

 

1. NATIONAL MISSION ON GOVERNMENT e-MARKETPLACE (GeM)

• • • • To accelerate the adoption and use of GeM by major central Ministries, State Governments and their agencies.
      • It aim at promotion of inclusiveness, transparency and efficiency in public procurement and achieve cashless, contactless and paperless

2. “WOMANIYA ON GeM”

• • • • an initiative to enable women entrepreneurs and women self-help groups to sell handicrafts and handloom, accessories, jute and coir products, home decor and office furnishings, directly to various Government ministries, departments and institutions.

3. GeM START-UP RUNWAY

• • • • An initiative of GeM in association with Start -up India to facilitate Start-ups registered with Start -up India to access the public procurement market and sell innovative products and services to government buyers.

 

TRANSPORT AND MARKETING ASSISTANCE (TMA) SCHEME 

Objectives

• • To provide assistance for the international component of freight and marketing of agricultural produce.

Coverage

• • All exporters, duly registered with relevant Export Promotion Council as per Foreign Trade Policy, of eligible agriculture products shall be covered under this scheme.
  • Export categories which are not eligible include:
    • 1. Products exported from SEZs/ EOUs/ EHTPs/ STPs/ BTPs/ FTWZs oExports through trans-shipment, i.e. exports that are originating in third country but trans- shipped through India;
      2. Export of goods through courier or foreign post offices using e-Commerce

Salient features

• • Assistance under TMA would be provided in cash through direct bank transfer as part reimbursement of freight paid.
  • The scheme covers freight and marketing assistance for export by air as well as by sea (both normal and refrigerated cargo).
  • The scheme would be included in the Foreign Trade Policy (2015-20)

 

REVENUE INSURANCE SCHEME FOR PLANTATION CROPS (RISPC)

• Launched in 2016 by Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
• It is an improved form of Price Stabilization Fund (PSF) Scheme, 2003 which was discontinued in 2013.

Objectives

• • To protect plantation growers, through crop insurance mechanism, from twin risks:
    • • Yield loss due to pest attacks, adverse weather parameters etc.
      • Income loss caused by fall in domestic and international prices. Thus, stabilizing income of growers to ensure their sustainability.

Implemented by

• • Commodity boards through selected insurance companies.

Salient features

• • It covers small growers of Rubber, Tea, Coffee (Robusta and Arabica), Tobacco and Cardamom having 10 ha or less landholding
  • Covers income loss arising out of yield loss due to non-preventable risks drought, dry spells, flood, pest and diseases, hail storm etc.
  • Scheme is compulsory for growers registered with the respective Commodity Boards (CBs).
  • It is being implemented on a pilot basis for two years from September 2016 in eight districts in West Bengal, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Sikkim and Tamil Nadu by the Commodity Boards through selected insurance companies.

 

MERCHANDISE EXPORTS FROM INDIA SCHEME (MEIS)

• It is an export promotion scheme launched under the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) 2015-20 by Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Objectives

• • To offset infrastructural inefficiencies and associated costs involved in exporting goods which are manufactured in India.

Salient features

• • It has replaced 5 different schemes of earlier FTP for rewarding merchandise exports which had varying conditions (sector specific or actual user only) attached to their use.
  • Schemes replaced by the MEIS are –
    • 1. Focus Product Scheme (FPS)
      2. Focus Market Scheme (FMS)
      3. Market Linked Focus Product Scheme (MLFPS)
      4. Agriculture Infrastructure incentive scheme
      5. Vishesh Krishi Gram Udhyog Vojna (VKGUY)
  • The scheme provides incentives in the form of duty credit scrip to the exporter to compensate for any losses on payment of duties.
  • Incentives vary from product to product and country to country.

 

NORTH EAST INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT SCHEME (NEIDS)

Objectives

• • to promote employment in the North East States, Government is incentivizing primarily the MSME Sector through this scheme

Salient features

• • Financial outlay –3000 crores
  • Duration – 2017-2022
  • Coverage – New units in manufacturing and services sectors – In All NE States, including Sikkim
  • Benefits – Central Capital Investment Incentive for access to credit, Interest Incentive, Insurance Incentive, GST Reimbursement, Income Tax Reimbursement, Transport Incentive; and Employment Incentive etc.

 

SERVICE EXPORTS FROM INDIA SCHEME (SEIS)

• • Launched under the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP), 2015-20 as a part of Exports from India Scheme under Ministry of Commerce and Industry .
  • Replaces ‘Served from India Scheme’ present in earlier Foreign Trade Policy

Salient features

• • SEIS shall apply to `Service Providers’ located in India instead of `Indian Service Providers’.
  • Thus, SEIS provides for rewards to all Service providers of notified services, who are providing services from India, regardless of the constitution or profile of the service provider.
  • Under SEIS, the service providers of notified services are incentivized in the form of Duty Credit Scrips at the rate of 3 or 5% on their net foreign exchange earnings. These SEIS scrips are transferrable and can also be used for payment of a number of Central duties/taxes including the basic customs duty.

 

OTHER SCHEMES BY MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY

 

 

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