Fresh customs, banking reforms on cards for Viksit Bharat: FM

Indiais preparing another round of customs and banking reforms as part of its efforts to improve the business environment and support the country’s journey towards Viksit Bharat, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said.

Speaking on the sidelines of the G20 Finance Ministers’ meeting in Asheville, Sitharaman said further changes would build on reforms already undertaken in direct and indirect taxation.

“Customs, we’ve done some, we’ll have to do more. We’ll be taking those up,” she said. The government is working to make the movement of imported goods through Indian ports more seamless. A key proposal involves using scanners to focus checks on high-risk importers, while allowing other consignments to be cleared automatically. “We are trying to bring in scanners and have high-risk importers alone go through them, and the rest of them can be cleared automatically,” Sitharaman said.

The proposed system is aimed at reducing delays for businesses, easing congestion at ports and allowing customs authorities to concentrate resources on higher-risk consignments. The Finance Minister did not provide a timeline for introducing the scanners or implementing the automatic clearance system.

The government has also appointed a high-level committee to examine the banking sector and its future role in achieving the country’s development objectives.

“The banks, of course, we’ve appointed a high-level committee to look into banking for Viksit Bharat,” Sitharaman said.