EEPC India, the apex engineering exports promotion body, today thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Commerce and Industries Minister Piyush Goyal for launching the Rs 25,060 crore Export Promotion Mission (EPM) to enhance export competitiveness for MSMEs, first–time exporters and labour intensive sectors through a unified and adaptive export framework.

"We are grateful that the engineering sector has been earmarked as one of the core sectors to receive priority assistance under the EPM as the sector has been affected by the global tariff shift," EEPC India Chairman Pankaj Chadha said.

The initiatives are expected to enhance export competitiveness, support MSMEs and first-time exporters, facilitate new market access, and improve ease of doing business, strengthening India’s export-led growth.

Piyush Goyal said the EPM would bring together all export support under a single, outcome-based mechanism by consolidating schemes like IES and MAI, EPM delivers an inclusive, technology-enabled framework. He said the EPM addresses the real challenges faced by Indian exporters, building a stronger and more resilient trade ecosystem, "A big leap towards Vikshit Bharat-2047."

EEPC India has also urged the government to include steel and aluminum products manufactured by MSMEs in ongoing US bilateral trade agreement (BTA) negotiations and to maintain current quota and tariff structures during FTA talks with the EU.

Taking up the exporting community's concerns with the negotiating team for the FTAs, EEPC India Chairman Pankaj Chadha said that the implementation of the 50 percent tariff under Section 232 has significantly impacted engineering exports to the US market, necessitating the inclusion of specified products in the BTA negotiation.

"The 50 percent tariff imposition by the US increases the tariff differential with our competitors to an average of 30 pc. This definitely impacts our position in the US market. A special support package that can absorb at least 15 pc of this differential would help us to secure our position," EEPC India suggested. Regarding the pressing concerns of the industry about the EU tariff rate quota (TRQ), the EEPC India chairman has sought exemption for stainless-steel long products (Categories 14, 15, and 22) from TRQs, given their MSME dominance and strategic importance.

For other product categories, the Engineering Exports Promotion Council has suggested increasing the quota volumes. "It may be ensured that out-of-quota tariffs do not exceed 25 pc, and the same is gradually phased out over five to six years, especially considering the ongoing FTA negotiations with the EU," Chadha said.