The Indian government has voiced plans to switch from checking 100 per cent of its imported food consignments to random inspections in a move that should reduce customs clearance times, according to the Times of India.

The Central Board of Excise and Customs has called for specified time frames for consignments to clear customs, potentially reducing clearance times from the current ten to 15 days down to as little as 12 hours.

Keith Sunderlal of Indian agribusiness consultancy The SCS Group has welcomed the news, with the move to risk-based checks of imported produce likely to reduce costs for importers, cut down on delays at ports, and increase the ease of doing business in India.

“India has being following a 100 per cent sample testing for all food imports for several years. Clearly this comes as a huge cost for importers who have to contend with delays in clearances and absorb cost of samples and tests,” Ketih Sunderlal of SCS Group said. “Adopting a more common-sense approach, as just announced by [the Indian government], of risk-based sampling will facilitate imports and reduce unnecessary congestion at ports. We look forward to implementation of this policy.”

India's total imports fell slightly from US$450bn in 2013/14 to US$448bn in 2014/15, according to the Times.

Source:fruitnet.com