With an aim to provide relief to exporters facing disruptions due to the ongoing West Asia conflict, the government has come out with the RELIEF (Resilience & Logistics Intervention for Export Facilitation) scheme with an outlay of Rs 497 crore. Commerce Ministry said the scheme, with the Export Credit Guarantee Corporation of India (ECGC) as the implementing agency, includes automatic extension of export obligations, logistical support, and potential financial measures to manage shipping delays and higher freight and insurance costs. The intervention is aimed at supporting Indian exporters affected by extraordinary freight escalation, heightened insurance premiums, and war-related export risks arising from disruptions in the Gulf and wider West Asia maritime corridor.

Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agarwal said ‘We are announcing a new scheme under the Export Promotion mission, especially focused upon exporters exposed to these 17-18 geographies which have been impacted by the conflict to assuage some of the challenges that our exporters are facing.’ He said due to the West Asia conflict, there has been some impact on the trade environment and exporters are facing certain challenges, with a ‘sense of worry’ particularly among those having exposure to countries in the Gulf region. He noted ‘There have been instances where the exports which were meant for some of the countries in the Middle East have not been able to reach their destinations. The future exports are also getting impacted. There is a sense of worry in exporters especially among those who have exposure to the Middle East markets’.

The RELIEF scheme includes automatic extension of export obligations, logistical support, and potential financial measures to manage shipping delays. It mainly covers consignments destined for delivery or transhipment to the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Iraq, Iran, Israel, and Yemen. The scheme has three key components. Component I includes Export Obligation Extensions: Automatic extension for Advance Authorisations and EPCG authorisations (due between March 1 and May 31, 2026) until August 31, 2026, without penalty. It protects already insured shipments by ECGC in the immediate one-month window from February 14-March 15. 

Component II is aimed at encouraging and facilitating ECGC coverage for upcoming exports consignments over three months from March 16 to June 15. The Component III specifically targets MSMEs to shield them from surcharge shocks and partly reimburses extraordinary freight and insurance costs over one month from February 14 to March 15. It is applicable for MSME exporters who have not taken ECGC coverage. Commerce & Industry Ministry said through RELIEF, the Government aims to mitigate the immediate impact of logistics disruptions, protect exporter confidence, prevent order cancellations and safeguard employment in export-linked sectors.