The process of generating no-objection certificates (NOCs), especially in case of products that are sent for testing to laboratories that are not close to points of entry, is time-consuming and is delaying the single-window clearance procedure. This was identified by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and the customs department, who met to streamline the procedure for clearance of food imports.
Citing an example, the customs department said, “The granting of NOCs by the respective participating government agencies (PGAs), including FSSAI is a time-consuming process, especially in cases where the samples need to be tested at a laboratory outside Mumbai, and where the testing process itself is time-consuming. In such a scenario, the dwell time (the time taken to clear the cargo) increases. This needs to be reduced to increase the overall efficiency, reduce the cost and make the imports more competitive.â€
The importers expressed other areas of concern, including sampling and storage at the points of entry. To address these, it allotted space in the container freight station (CFS), where the consignments are stored. It also asked all food business operators (FBOs) to comply with the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. A number of importers demanded that the procedure of obtaining NOCs from FSSAI be reviewed.
Sunil Sachdev, an importer, stated, “The delays in obtaining NOCs existed for a long time, even before the streamlining of the single-window system. An NOC is a vital step in ensuring the safety of the imported food, but our concern is that no time limit has been assigned to FSSAI to furnish the results of laboratory tests and generate NOCs.â€
The customs department also discussed import consignments to which the necessary NOC has not been generated. It added that a number of appeals for the same had been sent to the concerned CFS to initiate the procedure of reimport or destruction of the consignments, whichever is suitable.
At the meeting, issues regarding provisional NOCs generated through government agencies were also deliberated upon. It may be mentioned that the PGAs have been following the practice of provisional NOC of cargo pending the final NOC after obtaining the proper bond from the importer.
Therefore, the PGAs were requested to extend the scope of provisional NOC to all goods on an appropriate study and initiate the process of making the appropriate changes in the existing procedure, so that the dwell time is reduced.
The integrated declaration by the customs department, announced in March 2016, included a set of standardised and rationalised data, which had aimed at 60 per cent reduction in the number of data fields that the trade had to manage in the systems and in hard copy. To streamline the same, the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) made it mandatory to file the bill of entry in advance.
CBEC conducted a study on the dwell time taken to clear the import consignments and did not only cut down about two hours of delay in the process vis-a-vis that of last year, but also identified the factors responsible for the delay.
A notice issued by the board stated that the study of the time taken by the various stakeholders in the import clearance procedure revealed that the delay on the part of importers in filing the bills of entry was one of the major factors responsible for the delay in obtaining clearances for the imported consignments.
It added that as a measure to ensure faster clearances, reduce the dwell time of cargo and as a step towards ease of doing business, it was decided that advance/prior filing of bills of entry in the system would become mandatory with effect from January 1, 2017.
