India bans certain mobile phones, toys and dairy products

New Delhi, June 16: India today announced a slew of restrictions on imports of certain mobile phones, dairy products and toys which will mainly hit China.
"Import of 'Mobile Handsets' without International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number or with all zeroes IMEI is prohibited with immediate effect," the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said in a notification.

IMEI, a 15-digit code that appears on operator's network when a call is made, helps authorities track users.

Concerns were raised over usage of such phone after the terrorist attacks like the one in Mumbai in November last year and they are seen as a serious threat to security In a separate notification, DGFT, the nodal agency which frames India's export and import polices, said shipments of toys that do not meet international safety standards and norms from countries across the world is banned till January 2010.

Earlier in January, India had prohibited import of toys from China on health grounds. The restriction was, however, eased later. Today's widening of curbs assumes significance as Beijing had questioned India for not implementing safety standard norms on toys being imported from other countries.

DGFT also said imports of toys accompanied by a certificate from laboratories accredited to the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) would be allowed. PTI