due to petroleum (POL) imports which fell billion in 1993-94 but non-POL imports billion in 1993-94 but non-POL imports also fell from $ 18.05 billion to $ 17.56 billion during the period, though during 1993-94 they made a recovery by 14.6 per cent. With such a low import level, the export potential could not have been augmented to a significant extent although, during the first two months of the current fiscal year, imports have risen by 12.1 per cent from $ 3,465 million to $ 3,883 million; evidence suggests that non-POL imports would have risen at a faster rate.