Shri Darpan Jain, Additional Secretary, Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry, briefed the media today in Bengaluru on ‘Free Trade Agreements, India’s 12 Years of Progress in the Field of IT Services’. Ms. Anoopa S. Nair, Director in the Ministry, was  present on this occasion.

Highlighting the progress in the commercial sector, Shri Darpan Jain stated that the department has taken decisive steps towards transforming India into a global export hub to achieve Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi's vision of 'Viksit Bharat 2047'.

During the 12-year period beginning from Financial Year 2014-15 to 2025-26, India's overall export sector recorded a Compound Annual Growth Rate(CAGR) of 5.7%, thereby expanding the country's trade capacity at the global level. Shri Darpan Jain stated that, India's services sector exports grew significantly by 9.3% over the same period, strengthening the country's economy. He also added that this has helped to structurally offset the overall trade deficit.

The electronic goods export sector achieved the highest growth of 20.3%. Its export value reached 47.96 billion US Dollars in Financial Year 2026. Engineering goods created an all-time record by reaching 122.4 billion US Dollars in Financial Year 2026. The pharmaceutical sector achieved a growth of 7.4% and reached a value of 31.1 billion US Dollars. The export value of spices crossed 4.3 billion US Dollars, while coffee exports rose to 2.1 billion US Dollars with an annual growth of 15.3%. Marine products exports reached ₹73,439.91 crore. Shri Darpan Jain highlighted that the share of services sector exports in the overall export value has risen from 35% in 2009-10 to 48% by 2025-26.

Sharing details about the Free Trade Agreements(FTAs), Shri Darpan Jain stated that the Government of India is working towards expanding the market and creating new opportunities. Currently, 9 Free Trade Agreements have been signed with 38 countries in the last 5 years alone. This has added a GDP value of 56 trillion US Dollars. Earlier, there was a 10-20% duty on the export of certain products. However, through these agreements, exports in sectors such as agriculture, textiles, gems and jewellery, marine products, electronic equipment, and pharmaceuticals are now duty-free, opening up new opportunities for the country's producers besides increasing exports to new countries. Shri Darpan Jain also stated that this is also strengthening the bilateral relations with the countries India has signed FTAs.

Shri Darpan Jain mentioned that the implementation of digital technologies such as Trade Connect Platform, eCoO 2.0, and TIA Portal has simplified trade processes. Shri Darpan Jain noted that government incentive measures like 'Make in India' and PLI are the main reasons for the success.

He stated that despite global challenges such as COVID, the Russia-Ukraine war, America's tax policies, and the war in West Asia, India's exports are achieving remarkable progress. The state of Karnataka is at the forefront of IT services exports and also has good progress in the export of textiles and petroleum products, he said. Shri Darpan Jain stated that the government is committed to building a developed India by 2047 by taking local products to the global level.

 

*****

(Release ID: 2270708) Visitor Counter : 266