Neglecting to fund its Market Access Initiative (MAI) led to Indian exporters missing out on critical opportunities to showcase their products in global exhibitions between April and August, said economic think tank, Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), on Saturday.
Suggesting the government pumps in a stimulus package of ₹2,500 crore for exporters to participate in overseas fair, it said diversifying exports to new markets will not happen overnight.
"The MAI, which helped exporters participate in overseas exhibitions, has not received any funds in FY2025, the first such lapse in decades. As a result, exporters missed critical opportunities between April and August, and even if funds are released later, prime exhibition spaces booked 1-2 years in advance will no longer be available," said Ajay Srivastava, founder of GTRI.
Srivastava said a modest budget of ₹250 crore in past years also did not help matters, making the scheme inefficient for a USD 440 plus billion export economy.
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"The scheme must be revived with a scaled-up budget of ₹2,500 crore annually, with funds released at least a year in advance to allow Indian firms to secure high-visibility slots at global fairs," he added, and said it is only by cutting costs by 5-10 per cent through revived schemes along with streamlined procedures and expanded funding that India can buy time and space for its exporters to expand beyond the US market.
Srivastava further advised the government to resume the Interest Equalisation Scheme (IES), immediately roll out the Export Promotion Mission (EPM), and E-commerce Export Hubs to boost exports as the 50 per cent tariffs imposed by the US on Indian goods start having an impact on Indian exports.
The suspension of the IES since April 2025 has left MSME exporters struggling with high financing costs compared to the 5-7 per cent lower rates they previously enjoyed under the scheme, he stated.
"This has eroded competitiveness for labour-intensive sectors such as textiles, leather, handicrafts, and engineering goods," he said.
IES must be reinstated to cover all exports and with an expanded annual budget of ₹15,000 crore and a five-year commitment, Srivastava said, adding that it will help restore their cost advantage and ensure predictability.
Meanwhile, the establishment of E-commerce Export Hubs, which were announced back in February 2023, could unlock USD 10-15 billion in additional annual exports in just a few years.
“But, that has not progressed, with no infrastructure or guidelines in place to allow shipments. Additionally, export promotion funding has steadily declined, weakening support for small and mid-sized exporters,” GTRI said in its report.
On the customs front, Srivastava said, exporters continue to face serious inefficiencies at ports.
He recommends speeding up of customs clearance, making the remission of duties and taxes on exported products scheme benefits predictable, and simplification of advance authorisation scheme.
“The earlier MEIS scheme had a ₹45,000 crore outlay benefitting 40,000 exporters, but it was abolished in 2020 and replaced by RoDTEP and RoSCTL with barely ₹20,000 crore,” he said.
Independent year-round monitoring could help reduce logistics costs by 5-7 per cent of export value, the GTRI founder said.
"The bulk of funds were shifted to the PLI scheme, which has benefitted fewer than 100 firms, with limited disbursements. To restore balance, India must allocate higher amounts annually to broad-based export schemes, ensuring widespread support for MSMEs, while continuing PLI for large- scale sectors”.
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