EEPC India seek govt intervention in TRQ mechanism by the EC

Engineering exporters' apex body EEPC India has sought government intervention to seek clarification on the European Commission's (EC) provisional safeguard duty of around 25 per cent on import of steel products through the mechanism of tariff rate quota (TRQs).

The EC has decided to initiate safeguard investigation, publishing implementing regulation for application of the TRQ measures with regard to imports of steel products.

"For India, 14 product sectors have come under the global TRQ regime initiated by the EC. We seek the kind intervention of the Department of Commerce and Ministry of Steel to take up certain issues with the EC seeking the redressal," EEPC India chairman Ravi Sehgal said in a statement issued here.

He said there is a confusion among the exporters as to how the TRQs would be administered in the European Union market where Indian exporters ship close to three million tonnes of different steel products.

According to EEPC, under the given dispensation, the EC has specified a particular limit for duty free imports of specific steel products, beyond which they would attract average duty of about 25 per cent.

"Our exporters and the government will have to do our home work in a manner so that India seeks clarification from the EC whether a subquota can be allotted to specific countries, including India. This can be then administered by India in a manner that we get maximum leverage in products where our exports are the maximum," the apex body said.

Besides, the EEPC has also sought clarification from the government as to how the quotas would be administered by the Indian Customs for dispatches made after July 17 this year, the cut-off date for the EU provisional measures.