Vivek Raghuvanshi
NEW DELHI — The Indian Air Force (IAF) has been hit by customs duties on aircraft engines and related spare parts leading to one MiG 29-K aircraft being stranded at Goa naval air base, said an IAF official in private.
Spare engines and related equipment have also been stranded at various other airports for nonpayment of customs duties, the official said.
IAF was caught unaware by the new requirement, which began April 1, but arrangements are being made to find funds to get the equipment released in the near future, the IAF official said.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in his 2016-17 budget allocations lifted blanket customs duty exemptions on several defense goods, including aircraft engines and related parts.
The move requiring payment of customs duties is in line with the "Make in India" policy, said an official of the Ministry of Defense (MoD), but it has caught the user [IAF] by surprise.
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