India-UK trade pact: First consignment of ready-made garments flagged from Amritsar airport 

Marking a historic milestone in bilateral trade, the first export consignment of ready-made garments under the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) was today flagged off from the Cargo Terminal of Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport, Amritsar. This special commercial consignment has been dispatched to Birmingham, UK, via an Air India direct flight.

The flag-off ceremony was conducted in the presence of senior officials, including Aditya Singh Chauhan (Deputy DGFT), Gaurav Gupta (Assistant Director) and AK Sharma, Airport Director, SGRDI airport, Amritsar.

The India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), which officially came into effect today, i.e. July 15, 2026, is a historic step that ushers in a new era for trade relations between the two nations. Its key impacts include a major relief for 99 per cent of Indian exports. With the implementation of this agreement, it is ensured that approximately 99 per cent of Indian products will now have duty-free access to the UK market.

Direct benefit to the textile industry and garments

Before the implementation of CETA, Indian ready-made garments and textiles were subject to high import duties ranging from 4 per cent to 16 per cent in the UK. This duty has now been completely reduced to zero for this labour-intensive sector, which will rapidly increase the demand and market share of Indian garments in British markets.

This will further boost to local economy and infrastructure. The dispatch of goods directly to international destinations from the Amritsar Cargo Terminal via Air India proves that exporters from Punjab and surrounding areas will no longer need to depend on airports in major metropolitan cities. This will result in significant savings in both time and logistics costs. This had been a long pending demand of the garment, textile manufacturers from Amritsar.