TRIVANDRUM May 7: Nearly 13 years after its inception, Kerala State Export Trade Development Council (Kerexil) has rustled up a proposal to bring in more central aid to the state's export promotion measures.

The subject committee of the state legislature on industries, which met on Monday, has given the nod for the council's export initiatives, official sources told FENS

, here, on Tuesday.

The Kerexil blueprint has ambitious schemes of charting out a shopping list of exportable commodities and services from the state, to the international buyer. For instance, the council has put up a scheme for organising an international trade fair in the state to coincide with the State Tourism Department's Onam celebrations, sources said.

The fair expects to stimulate global interest in the State's potential in floriculture, software expertise, circuit-breakers etc. The council has budgeted about Rs 21 lakh for the first phase of its export promotion measures.

While Kerexil's proposed international fair is to be sustained largely by the sponsors, the expenses for bringing in international delegates are expected to be funded through commerce ministry's market development assistance (MDA) to states.

The state's premier export promotion agency was made an autonomous body with the purpose of meeting the eligibility norms for channelising various export assistance funds from the union government. The council is not known to have marshalled any central assistance for export assistance so far.

The state, which contributes approximately Rs 5000 crore to the centre's foreign exchange earnings through exports, is also losing a substantial share of it through sales tax exemption. The states are expected to make good these losses through various export promotion schemes like Fieo's assistance and MDA to the states.

MDA scheme was to help the states give R&D equipping facilities to meet export standards and set up export liaison offices abroad. While MDA scheme offers to fund up to 60 per cent of the expenses incurred, Fieo has earmarked about Rs 1.4 crore for 1996-97 for disbursments to the states in need of export promotion assistance.

Kerala has not so far received any of these export assistance measures.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.