The Indian Ministry of Commerce & Industry has undertaken a series of targeted reforms to strengthen the functioning of norms committees (NCs) under the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), it recently said.

The measures aimed at improving turnaround time, enabling early approvals and enhancing transparency and predictability under the Advance Authorisation (AA) scheme.

The Indian Ministry of Commerce & Industry has undertaken a series of targeted reforms to strengthen the functioning of norms committees under the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, it recently said.
The measures—aimed at improving turnaround time, enabling early approvals and enhancing transparency and predictability under the Advance Authorisation scheme—have resulted in improved outcomes.

DGFT administers the AA scheme and the Duty-Free Import Authorisation (DFIA) scheme under the Foreign Trade Policy. These schemes allow duty-free import of inputs that are physically incorporated in export products.

Authorisations are generally issued against notified standard input-output norms (SION). In cases where SION is not available, authorisations are issued based on self-declared input-output norms by applicants, which are subsequently examined and finalised by sector-specific NCs.

At present, seven NCs are operational under DGFT, covering a range of export sectors. These comprise technical authorities and domain experts from relevant ministries and departments. They are responsible for fixation of SION and ad-hoc norms, recommending SION notifications and facilitating issuance of authorisations in accordance with the Foreign Trade Policy and handbook of procedures.

The functioning of NCs had been affected by capacity constraints due to a limited number of technical authorities. As of early February 2026, only twelve technical members were associated with the committees, including five serving government officers, resulting in increasing pendency due to overlapping responsibilities.

To address these challenges, a series of reforms have been introduced. These include strengthening of governance and processes; augmentation of technical capacity; and a special disposal drive for expeditious disposal of pending applications.

Detailed guidelines have been issued to ensure uniformity and consistency in the functioning of NCs. These include institutionalised scheduling of meetings on a fixed fortnightly cycle, prioritisation of long-pending cases, time-bound finalisation of meeting minutes and systematic monitoring of pendency and case ageing.

Efforts have also been made to identify recurring cases for conversion into SION to reduce repetitive approvals.

Line ministries have been requested to nominate additional technical officers to the committees to enhance sectoral expertise and reduce dependence on a limited pool of members.

As part of capacity augmentation, ten additional technical members have been nominated from various ministries, increasing the total number of technical authorities from 12 to 22.

The reforms have resulted in improved outcomes, a release from the ministry said. Between January 2026 and 7 April 2026, a total of 38 NC meetings were held, in which 3,925 cases were taken up and 1,770 cases were disposed of.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)

In February, Fibre*Fashion reported, citing an Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency report, that the India–EU FTA pushes for eliminating the duties on shipments from India and giving the country a competitive edge against competitors such as Bangladesh and Vietnam, who have so far enjoyed free entry into the EU region.

The FTA between India and the EU is expected to come into effect sometime in early January and with the United Kingdom in June or July this year. CEO of The Synerg, Karthikeyan Shanmugam, said in an interview with Fibre*Fashion that the future is quite good for India’s textile industry as the FTAs come into place.

Sri Lanka’s Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose sharply to 66.7 in March from 56.8 in February, signalling a strong acceleration in factory activity, according to the data issued by the Statistics Department. Growth was led by higher new orders (69.9) and production (68.8), particularly in the textile and wearing apparel sectors.

Firms also increased stock purchases to support rising output, with some resorting to precautionary inventory building amid concerns over disruptions linked to the ongoing Middle East conflict, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka said in a press release.

Sri Lanka’s manufacturing PMI surged to 66.7 in March from 56.8 in February, driven by strong gains in new orders and production, particularly in apparel.
Firms raised inventories amid Middle East-related risks.
However, supply constraints, rising costs, and logistics issues persisted, with delivery times worsening.
Employment growth slowed.
Outlook remains positive.

Despite robust demand, manufacturers reported a constrained operating environment due to raw material and fuel shortages, rising input costs, and logistical challenges. Supplier delivery times lengthened significantly to 75.5, reflecting shipping disruptions and demand pressures. Employment rose at a slower pace, indicating cautious hiring despite increased workloads.

Looking ahead, business expectations for the next quarter remain positive across sectors, supported by seasonal trends and emerging opportunities. However, concerns persist over the impact of the Middle East conflict, supply disruptions, and broader global economic uncertainty, which may weigh on future momentum.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (SG)