In a statement, it said that Customs have agreed to examine specific cases relating to destuffing to further streamline procedures with regard to hazardous cargo.
These issues came up at two separate meetings on March 9 on the concerns and challenges of the exporting community due to the rising cost of packaging material and disruptions in the ship movement in international waters, especially to the West Asia region.
The meeting, chaired by Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal, focused on challenges arising from disruptions in packaging materials and associated inputs.
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“Sectoral inputs highlighted that stress in supply chains, logistics constraints and rising input costs can impact industries such as apparel, leather, telecom/optical fibre and medical devices,” the ministry said on the meeting with packaging industry.
Industry participants highlighted the increase in prices of critical inputs, placing particular stress on MSMEs.
They flagged the need for support in terms of continued availability of critical inputs such as LNG, helium and petrochemical derivatives, along with early GST refunds to improve liquidity, according to the statement.
“It was observed that the ongoing geopolitical developments can impact the availability and pricing of key petrochemical inputs, such as polymers and resins, leading to increased costs for packaging materials across sectors,” it added.
The conflict in West Asia has posed challenges for exporters to ship goods to the Gulf region, with which India had a bilateral trade of $178 billion in FY25.
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Agrawal emphasised the need for undertaking time-bound assessments of key packaging inputs, including mapping domestic production capacity and identifying import dependencies.
“He mentioned that a structured monitoring mechanism for tracking export-import trends and sectoral stress indicators on a weekly basis will also be instituted,” it said.
Following the meeting, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has directed all ports and terminal operators to take immediate action to enhance transparency and operational efficiency.
These measures include publication of concessions and waivers provided to cargo and vessels, review of bunker fuel availability, and expedited evacuation of stranded containers, reinforcing efficiency across the system.
Logistics-related issues were discussed among Agrawal, shipping secretary, senior officials, port authorities, shipping agencies, Export Promotion Councils, industry representatives and other stakeholders.