New Delhi, Aug 14 (ANI): MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal addresses a press conference on the status of the Indus Water Treaty, in New Delhi on Friday. (ANI Video Grab)
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India is among over 40 countries accused by Washington of helping China circumvent higher US tariffs by allowing Chinese goods to be illegally rerouted through their territories before entering the American market.Responding to allegations made against India in a recent White House report titled 'The Great Transshipment Scam’, the Ministry of External Affairs said that India had its own robust laws and customs procedures and violations are dealt with in accordance with law.While the report does not break down figures specifically for India, it provides a combined estimate alongside Mexico and Vietnam: “OTEA (Office of Trade and Economic Analysis of the US Commerce Department) estimates that approximately $67 billion in US-bound goods were transshipped from China through the top hubs—Mexico, India, and Vietnam—in 2025, producing an estimated $28 billion in lost tariff revenue,” the report noted.The allegationIllegal transshipment may involve relabeling, repackaging, re-invoicing, minor processing and false country-of-origin claims, the report highlighted.India has been in the first tier of countries considered to have elevated risks of China-linked transshipment, alongside Canada, the European Union, Israel, Japan, Mexico, South Korea and Taiwan. The report, however, cautions that the risk in these countries is “embedded within broad legitimate trade flows”.While the report doesn’t specify concrete action against named countries, Indian exports could face more scrutiny as US Customs plans to use shipment data and AI tools to flag goods with possible Chinese origin.Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the Indian government has just seen the report and was studying the details. “We would like to study the fine-print and the methodology that has been adopted in detail. We have robust laws, procedures, governing customs, rules of origin and exports of products. And any instances of violations that may be there are dealt with in accordance with law,” Jaiswal told the media in an interaction on Friday.ReroutingThe report specifically points to India’s Pune-Gujarat-Chennai production belt, identifying pumps and compressors as a product category at risk. It maps shipments in these categories to manufacturing corridors in Cincinnati, Dayton and Columbus in the US, suggesting that alleged rerouting could put American producers of similar goods under pressure.Trade research body GTRI said India has substantial manufacturing capacity in the product groups flagged by the US, indicating sufficient domestic production for exports.“In FY2026, India exported liquid pumps worth $1.61 billion globally, including $414.5 million to the US, while importing $326.4 million from China. It also exported air pumps and gas compressors worth $1.48 billion globally, including $335.4 million to the US, while importing $1.63 billion from China,” said GTRI’s Ajay Srivastava. “India’s large global exports weaken any presumption that its US shipments are simply Chinese goods being rerouted.”The report, prepared under Peter Navarro, says Section 301 tariffs initially reduced the US trade deficit with China, but also encouraged Chinese exporters to exploit tariff gaps by routing goods through third countries.“We would like to study the fine-print and the methodology that has been adopted in detail. Randhir Jaiswal Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Published on August 14, 2026
