Budget 2018: Customs duty hike will give impetus to 'Make in India', says Arun Jaitley
Arun Jaitley
While presenting the Budget on Thursday, Jaitley had announced a hike in customs duty on mobile phones to 20 per cent from 15 per cent
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturdaysaid that the decision to hike customs duty on mobile phones and other luxury items was taken in national interest.
Speaking to Zee Business, Jaitley said, “There are many goods that we make in India. And I don’t see any point in not promoting home-made goods. A few years ago, there were a handful of countries which manufactured mobile phones. Today, that number has grown substantially. And many of them are home-grown. But people buy or import phones from abroad, and this is hurting the domestic market. So, our government took this decision of increasing customs duty to promote Make in India.”
It’s not right to keep importing goods and not promote our own companies, Jaitley said.
While presenting the Budget on Thursday, Jaitley had announced a hike in customs duty on mobile phones to 20 per cent from 15 per cent in a bid to boost local value addition in domestic electronics manufacturing.
Jaitley said he was making a “calibrated departure” from the usual practice of reduction in customs duties. He said this is being done in view of the “substantial potential” for domestic value addition in sectors like food processing, electronics, auto components and footwear. The move will lead to the creation of more jobs in the country, Jaitley added.
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Commenting on the decision, Indian Cellular Association (ICA) National President Pankaj Mohindroo said that this will be the “last nail in the coffin” of imports.
“We are reaching a situation where imports would be nearly impossible,” Mohindroo added.
He said since the bulk of mobile phones are manufactured domestically, there will be no impact on their prices. The exception will be a few brands, that are still making phones overseas.
Customs duty on smartwatches and wearables has been doubled to 20%, while specified parts and accessories of mobile phones have seen a duty hike to 15 per centfrom the current range of 7.5-10 per cent.