The first e-commerce export hub in the country is expected to be operationalised from March this year, a senior government official said on Wednesday. The pilot launch of these hubs has been approved for five firms — logistics aggregator Shiprocket and air cargo handling company Cargo Service Centre in Delhi; DHL and Lexship in Bengaluru; and goGlocal in Mumbai, Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Santosh Kumar Sarangi said.
He said the departments of commerce and revenue, along with the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), are working on formulating a standard operating procedure (SOP) to operationalise these hubs. “We expect the first e-commerce hub operational by March of this year,” he told reporters here.
The key features of these hubs would include self-sealing with no customs/BCAS examination at gateway ports; easy reimport policy for returns; and onsite outposts for quality and certifying agencies.