Imports from Pakistan slip by 92% in a year

New Delhi: Imports from Pakistan declined by 92% to $2.84 million in the one-year period till March this year, following imposition of 200% customs duties on all products imported from the neighbouring country.

According to data of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, imports from the neighbouring country stood at $34.61 million in March 2018. Out of the $2.84 million, about $1.19 million was accounted for by cotton imports by India.

During the January-March period of the 2018-19 fiscal, imports from Pakistan declined by 47% to $53.65 million. India’s exports to Pakistan, too, dipped by about 32% to $171.34 million in March. However, exports grew by 7.4% to $2 billion during 2018-19.

After the Pulwama terror attack, India took strong economic action against Pakistan, raising the customs duty to 200% on all goods imported from the neighbouring country, including cotton, fresh fruits, cement, petroleum products and mineral ore.

India had also revoked the MFN (most favoured nation) status to Pakistan after the attack. The country has repealed a security excep tion clause of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to withdraw this status. The MFN status on Pakistan was granted by India in 1996, though the former did not reciprocate.

Under the MFN pact, a WTO member country is supposed to treat the other trading country in a non-discriminatory manner.

The main commodities which were imported during the one-year period from the neighbouring country include plastics, knitted fabrics, preparation of vegetables, articles of apparel and clothing, spices, chemicals, man-made filaments, and wool. However, the commodities which are being exported by India include organic chemicals, cotton, nuclear reactors, boilers, plastic products, tanning or dyeing extracts, cereals, sugar, coffee, tea, articles of iron and steel, copper and footwear.

Imports and exports between India and Pakistan have been declining since 2014-15. Through the Attari-Wagah border alone, India’s exports have declined significantly from Rs 2,117 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 131 crore in 2018-19.

Imports, too, have seen a sharp fall from Rs 2,368 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 721 crore in 2018-19.

Pakistan allows the imports of as many as 138 items from India through the Wagah border.