Centre withdraws list of imported items banned from paramilitary canteens citing discrepancies
This came after several items listed by the government turned out to be manufactured in India.
The Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday withdrew a list of over 1,000 imported products to be banned from the Central Armed Police Forces canteens hours after it was issued, citing discrepancies, and said that a revised list will be released soon, PTI reported. This came after several of the items listed by the government turned out to be manufactured in India.
The products had been de-listed after the government on May 13 announced that paramilitary canteens will sell only “made in India” products from June 1 in a bid to give a fillip to domestic industries. The announcement was made by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan”, which roughly translates to “self-reliant India scheme”.
AP Maheshwari, chairperson of the Welfare and Rehabilitation Board-cum Directorate General Central Reserve Police Force, said that the list issued by Kendriya Police Kalyan Bhandar on May 29 “regarding [the] de-listing of certain products has been erroneously issued at the level of chief executive officer,” ANI reported. The Kendriya Police Kalyan Bhandar is the parent body that runs the canteens. “The list has been withdrawn and action is being initiated for the lapse,” he added.
The list included about 1,026 items from over 70 companies. Among the products and brands that were banned were Nutella, Kinder Joy, Tic Tac, Horlicks Oats, Eureka Forbes, Tommy Hilfiger shirts and Adidas body sprays. Certain brands of microwave ovens and several other home appliances too were taken off. Seven firms importing products including Skechers, Ferrero, RedBull, Victorinox, Safilo (Polaroid, Carrera) were also de-listed.
However, the list ended up also including names of several Indian manufacturers and products such as Dabur, Bajaj and Usha.
“The said officer took out the order without consulting [the] ministry, so seniors have taken offence and action may be taken against [the] said officer,” an unidentified official of the home ministry told NDTV. “A revised list will be sent out shortly.”
The Kendriya Police Kalyan Bhandars had divided all products into three categories. The first category comprised products which are purely made in India, while second one includes products that use imported raw materials but are manufactured or assembled in India. The third category consists of “purely imported products”.
The centre paramilitary forces canteens cater to around 10 lakh personnel and 50 lakh families and sell items worth around Rs 2,800 crore annually. The products range from groceries, clothes, gift items and vehicles among others.
The CAPF includes the Central Reserve Police Force, the Border Security Force, the Central Industrial Security Force, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, the Sashastra Seema Bal, the National Security Guard and the Assam Rifles.