SME Times News Bureau | 17 Dec, 2018
Reports
that the RBI was contemplating to forward cases of non-realisation of export
proceeds to the ED have created panic among Indian exporters, said the Engineering
Export Promotion Council of India (EEPC) on Monday.
"We
have received several complaints from our members about the banks not issuing
documents about the remittance receipts even after submission of all the
required papers. Thus, exporters are facing a double whammy -- losing refunds
like drawbacks and the possibility of Enforcement Directorate action,"
EEPC Chairman Ravi Sehgal said in a statement.
He added while the EEPC has been regularly advising its members to reconcile
their remittances records, several banks are not issuing clearances, especially
with regard to shipments to countries like Syria, Iran and Sudan.
At a time when exports are facing global headwinds like slowdown in the
American economy, uncertainty over Brexit and the trade war between the US and
China, the Reserve Bank of India and the government should be dealing with
issues like remittances in a "friendly manner", Sehgal said.
"In any case, it is in the interest of exporters to get their remittances
in as quickly as possible. It is in rare cases that there may be temptation of
foreign exchange arbitrage which could even result into losses. So, the problem
seems to be more of procedures and should be treated like that," he said.
The body expressed concern that India's overall merchandise exports remained
static, logging in less than 1 per cent growth this November.