10% duty on still cameras

The government on Friday imposed a 10% import duty on digital still cameras, a move that is likely to make all cameras in India dearer by Rs 1,000-1,00,000.

The government on Friday imposed a 10% import duty on digital still cameras, a move that is likely to make all cameras in India dearer by Rs 1,000-1,00,000.

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Till date, the digital cameras had been exempted from the import duties. All cameras in India are imported and there is negligible domestic production. It may prove to be the death knell for the R3,000 crore camera industry that is already battling an intense competition from mobile phones. Ironically, the latter will get cheaper due to a reduction in duties for some components.

“This is a damaging move,” said Alok Bharadwaj, senior vice-president, Canon India.