New Delhi: The Finance Ministry may withdraw fiscal incentives given to exporters to fix the budgetary hole, Commerce Secretary Rahul Kullar said here on Wednesday.
"My fear is that North Block (Finance Ministry) guys are having a hard look (at the numbers) to fix the budgetary hole and easy target are exporters," Khullar told reporters.
Exports rebounded in November after contracting for 13-months in a row and the December figures could be a clincher, he said.
As far as the sectoral review by the Commerce Ministry is
concerned, Khullar said that the exercises is not yet complete.
The incentives given by the Commerce Ministry could also
be reshuffled depending on the sectoral performance.
Due to the global slump in demand, India's exports were
in the negative since October 2008. To boost shipments, the
government has announced incentives that include 2 percent
interest subsidy and duty refunds on inputs used for exports.
Earlier today, however, the government said the fiscal
stimulus given to the industry at the height of the slowdown
will not be withdrawn until the next budget to be presented by
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in February.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, December 23, 2009, 16:31