The Indian government will bring 1,000 more grades of steel under mandatory quality control orders (QCO) within this year and cover the entire range of steel products used in the country, which will act as a non-tariff barrier to imports, a government official said on Friday, January 3.
Currently, 1,376 steel grades and products are covered under QCOs.
Under QCOs, no product can be manufactured, traded, stored, sold or imported that do not conform to the product specific standard laid down by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). Any violation of the orders is liable to attract penalties, both financial and imprisonment.
The officials said that covering all steel products and grades used in the country under QCOs will act as a non-tariff barrier to imports which are currently rising sharply and threatening the domestic steel industry.
“We aim to bring all steel grades under BIS standards within the next year, ensuring poor-quality steel does not enter the market. This initiative serves as a non-tariff barrier to regulate imports and maintain product quality while keeping the domestic industry competitive,” the official said. The twin approach of imposing both tariff and non-tariff barriers is the most effective strategy to check the rising import trend, he said.
It may be noted that the ministry of steel is seeking an increase in the import duty on finished steel to 15 percent from 7.5 percent at present. At the same time, the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) is conducting investigations aiming to imposed a safeguard duty of 25 percent on steel imports.
