India, Oct. 30 -- The recent government's decision to allow exporters to self-declare origin of goods (certificate of origin or CoO) under the India-EFTA free trade is a significant and genuinely progressive step towards "ease of doing business" for Indian exporters.

With this in place, the Indian exporters will now be spared from the hassles of collecting documents, applying for the certificate, and then endlessly waiting for the approval from the authorities before shipping their goods. The move will thus not only save time, effort, and money of our exporters, thus signalling a trust in the export fraternity.

Moreover, the move reflects a broader shift in our trade policy, which is now aimed at reducing compliance and building a trust...