Parallel import hits scale of Indian goods

KOZHIKODE: The parallel import of electronic goods to Kerala is on the rise despite several steps from the part of various companies to put an end to this menace, including not offering aftersale services to the products bought from a foreign country.  The issue has now started to affect the business operations of some of the electronic giants in the country.Biju Kumar, an official of the Samsung India said, “we are aware that parallel import of various electronic products is on the rise. As per the laws, we are not supposed to deny our services to the customers because the product is made in another country. But the trend has started to impact our business to some extent.”Profit is the only thing that lures the dealers to parallel import. According to market experts, a dealer engaged in parallel imports can buy a product of a company produced in another country and sell it at lower prices than that of the same product made in India. Those dealers are also using various IT companies operating from SEZ to import the products, as they are entitled to duty-free imports.Latest data say that the prices of the parallelly imported products in Kerala are around 20 percent less compared to the market value of the same product produced and marketed by the same company in India.According to Suresh P G, former president of the All Kerala IT Dealers Association (AKITDA), the rising parallel import is directly linked to the difference in the price of the product in India and abroad. As the products are imported without paying duty, the price of the goods  will come down gradually.Though several distributors are now engaged in parallel imports, AKITDA is not promoting it because it will have a negative impact on the business, according to Suresh.After it has sent warning signals across the business circles, some of the companies which have production centres in India have declined to provide services to the parallelly imported products and the issue has now reached the Delhi High Court with one of the electronic giants filing a complaint against a dealer on the issue.