NEW DELHI: Industry experts and the exporter-importer community of India have been calling for a watchdog or a regulatory body to regulate proper policy and bring transparency in the country’s logistic sector.

The micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in India contribute to 40 percent of exports. They also have a huge share in import basket. More export and import means more usage of logistics including shipping lines.

However, the absence of a Regulatory Body for the Logistics sector has given freehand to the logistic companies to levy high charges for exports and imports. The MSME sector is the main victim of this gap.

In a meeting with the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman recently to given Budget related suggestions, the apex body for MSME associations Federation of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises (FISME) said there is an urgent need for a regulator to bring order and transparency.

“We would like to raise the issue of arbitrary and unfair charges levied by Shipping lines on hapless Indian exporters and importers especially MSMEs,” FISME said in its pre-budget memorandum submitted to the Finance Minister.

FISME President Animesh Saxena highlighted that many a times these charges exceed the freight component itself. Many MSME exporters have often come up with grievance Shipping lines never disclose the details of the charges before hand and later the importers are forced to pay whatever charge they levy once the consignment has landed.

All the more, there is no platform where importers can file a complaint against these excesses.

Meanwhile, the Government is in the process of drafting national logistics policy within a month.

The draft policy seeks to create a single point of reference for all logistics and trade facilitation matters in the country which will also function as a knowledge and information sharing platform.

The Indian logistics sector is currently valued at USD160 Bn, the sector is expected to become worth USD 215 Bn in the next two years.