Coming up, India to host conference on dual-use tech, software

One Thing Today in Tech

An important conference is to take place tomorrow in New Delhi on India’s international role with respect to technologies that are considered dual use, meaning for civilian and industrial use, but also for defence and military applications.

India’s Directorate General of Foreign Trade, Department of Commerce in partnership with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and other Government Agencies is organising the National Conference on Strategic Trade Controls (NCSTC), tomorrow at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi, the nation’s capital.

The conference will focus on India's Strategic Trade Control related to SCOMET and export controls system and international best practices on export of dual-use (meaning industrial and military) goods, software and technologies, according to a government statement circulated by the Press Information Bureau yesterday.

SCOMET stands for Special Chemicals, Organisms, Materials, Equipment and Technologies.

Registrations for the conference have been invited by DGFT through its website. International speakers including the Chair of 1540 Committee of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and the Chair of Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), senior government officials including the Commerce Secretary, Member (Customs) of CBIC, Director General of DGFT, and others would be participating.

DGFT expects that more than 500 industry representatives will attend the conference.

The thematic sessions planned during the day-long conference will focus on various aspects of India’s Strategic Trade Control system, including the legal and regulatory framework, the steps taken to streamline the SCOMET policy and licensing processes, the enforcement mechanism and supply chain compliance programs.

India published its first Scomet list as part of its Foreign Trade Development and Regulation Act of 1992. In 2010, the Act was amended to add a new chapter, including a section that deals with controls on exports of specified goods, services and technologies – giving the central government the power to monitor and amend the list of such goods, services and technologies.

Currently the list includes goods, services and tech under nine categories, ranging from nuclear technologies to aviation and aerospace to electronics to chemicals and biotech.