Indian rupee plunges to all-time low, govt bans duty free imports of flat panel TVs by air travellers

The government yesterday banned duty-free import of flat screen TVs by air travellers in a bid to prop up the Indian rupee, which declined to below the 63 level against US dollar.

The government, according to a notification, has decided to "disallow import of flat panel (LCD/LED/Plasma) TVs as part of free baggage allowance" with effect from August 26.

Air travelers currently can bring a flat screen television for personal use without paying any duty.

This would mean air travelers bring in TV as part of the baggage from August 26 would have to pay customs duty.

In a order to contain the Current Account Deficit (CAD) and arrest declining value of rupee, the government has raised duty on gold, platinum and silver to 10 per cent.

Finance Minister P. Chidambaram had said that steps would be taken to compress import of non-essential goods.

The value of rupee touched all-time low of 63.30 to a dollar in the last afternoon trade.

This Article is written by CMA Samir Biswal. He can be reached at cmasamirbiswal@gmail.com.

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