Sumit Mazumder in Calcutta on Wednesday. Picture by Kishor Roy Chowdhury

Calcutta, March 23: The engineering and capital goods industry has called for changes in the foreign trade policy (FTP) after facing stiff challenges from the import of second-hand machinery.

According to the data available from the US Commercial Services, 75 per cent of all imported capital goods in India are second-hand, Sumit Mazumder, chairman of the CII National Committee on Capital Goods and Engineering, said here today.

?We have taken up the issue with the commerce ministry. The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) feels that there should be more safeguards for importing second-hand capital goods in the country,? Mazumder said.

The foreign trade policy removed the age barrier clause last year.

This has resulted in unscrupulous people taking advantage of the situation and flooding the market with poor quality products.

The CII has put forwarded four suggestions before the ministry. It said no depreciation should be allowed for second-hand machinery since they are already at a highly depreciated value.

For mobile equipment, certificates should verify that they fulfil local emission norms.

If any foreign company wants to close its project abroad and install the same in India, it may be allowed to import the plant at the applicable rate of duty.

This should also be applicable in the case of an Indian company importing a complete plant.

The differences between equipment and plant should be strictly adhered to.

In India, second-hand equipment is coming in mostly in construction and earthmoving machinery, machine tools, plastic processing machines, refineries, paper, packaging, printing and mining machinery.