The Indian Vegetable Oil Producers’ Association (IVPA) has asked the government to shift the port of entry for all edible oils destined for Nepal.
Recommending measures to curb the import of vegetable oils from Nepal, in a letter to the Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the IVPA President, Sudhakar Desai, suggested the need to shift the port of entry for all edible oils destined for Nepal. At present, Haldia port is being extensively used as the designated port for all edible oil imports for Nepal.
He said this concentration of traffic at a single port has led to several operational challenges, including severe congestion and vessel berthing delays; high demurrage costs incurred by importers due to prolonged waiting time; and limited availability of storage tanks, which affects timely unloading and handling. Draft restrictions at the port further aggravates turnaround efficiency of vessels.
Surging imports a challenge
He said that the designated port of entry for edible oil shipments to Nepal should be shifted from Haldia to alternate ports such as Visakhapatnam. This will help decongest Haldia and improve supply chain efficiency for both Nepal-bound and domestic consignments.
The Indian oilseed processing sector is facing challenges due to the surge in vegetable oil imports from South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) countries, particularly Nepal. This influx is severely impacting domestic refiners, oilseed farmers and leading to significant revenue losses for the government, he said.
Stressing the need to impose a 10-15 per cent Agriculture Infrastructure and Development Cess (AIDC) on refined oils, he said such a move would curb excessive imports and improve competitiveness for domestic refiners. Currently, AIDC is 5 per cent on crude edible oils but 0 per cent on refined oils.
A quota system (like the one implemented for Vanaspati imports from Nepal) would help regulate the volume of refined oil benefiting from duty-free access, he said.
Duty-free imports should be channelled through NAFED or similar government-affiliated co-operatives to regulate supply, ensure price stability and retain profits within the domestic market, Desai said in the letter.
