• The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, has notified the updated SCOMET list for the year 2024. 

• India’s export control list has been updated, incorporating the recent changes in the control lists of the multilateral export control regimes, and certain policy amendments in the national system, on the basis of inputs from relevant government organisations and stakeholders.

• With the recent update, DGFT has also authorised the Department of Defence Production (DDP), under the Ministry of Defence, to be the licensing authority for export of all items falling under Category 6 of SCOMET for military end use, streamlining certain exclusions existing earlier.

What are strategic trade controls/export controls?

• Strategic trade controls are laws and regulations on managing the flow of dual use goods, services and technologies across national borders. These laws and regulations primarily focus on controlling the export of such items in order to balance the country’s commercial and security considerations.

• ‘Dual Use’ implies the usage of these goods and technologies in military applications or its use in nuclear/chemical/Biological Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD), along with their civilian/industrial applications.

• India is a member of the major multilateral export control regimes — the Missile Technology Control Regime, Wassenaar Arrangement, and Australia Group, and harmonises its guidelines and control lists with that of these regimes and the Nuclear Suppliers Group.

What is SCOMET list?

• India regulates the exports of dual use items, nuclear related items, and military items, including software and technology under the SCOMET (Special Chemicals Organisms Materials Equipment and Technologies) list, which is notified by DGFT under the Foreign Trade Policy.

• The first control List, described as ‘Special Materials, Equipment and Technology’ (SMET), was notified in Export Import Policy in 1995. 

• Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992 was amended in 2010 to add Chapter IVA related to controls on export of specified goods, services and technology that includes SCOMET controls, and to align with certain provisions of the WMD Act.

• SCOMET is an acronym for Special Chemicals, Organisms, Materials, Equipment and Technologies. Accordingly, the SCOMET list is our National Export Control List of dual use items, munitions and nuclear related items, including software and technology.

• The SCOMET list has been updated multiple times over the years.

• As the exports under the SCOMET have increased during the last three years, the directorate has taken several initiatives, based on regular interactions with the industry to facilitate authorised and responsible export of these high-end goods and technologies. 

Key components of SCOMET list:

1) Special Chemicals: This category includes chemicals that have applications in various industries but also possess properties that can be used for chemical weapons or military purposes. Examples may include chemicals used in the production of pharmaceuticals or agriculture, yet with the potential for use in the development of chemical weapons. 

2) Organisms: Biological agents and organisms fall under this category. It encompasses living entities that may have applications in medical, agricultural, or industrial fields but may also pose a threat in the context of biological weapons or bioterrorism.

3) Materials: Materials that can be utilised in both civilian and military applications are covered under SCOMET. This may include metals, alloys, composites and special materials that have properties suitable for dual-use purposes.

4) Equipment: Various types of equipment that could have applications in strategic fields. This may encompass machinery, devices, or systems with potential dual-use capabilities.

5) Technologies: The technological aspect of SCOMET involves knowledge and information that can be applied in diverse sectors. Technologies with applications in research, development, and manufacturing, but with the potential for military and weapons of mass destruction (WMD) use, are included.

Various categories and licensing authorities in SCOMET are as under:

• Category 0: Nuclear materials, nuclear-related other materials, equipment and technology 

• Category 1: Toxic chemical agents and other chemicals

• Category 2: Micro-organisms, Toxins

• Category 3: Materials, Materials Processing Equipment and related Technologies

• Category 4: Nuclear-related other equipment and technology, not controlled under Category ‘0’

• Category 5: Aerospace systems, equipment, including production and test equipment, and related technology

• Category 6: Munitions List 

• Category 7: Reserved

• Category 8: Special Materials and Related Equipment, Material Processing, Electronics, Computers, Telecommunications, Information Security, Sensors and Lasers, Navigation and Avionics, Marine, Aerospace and Propulsion.

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