Industry body Indian Stainless Steel Development Association (ISSDA) today claimed that false allegations are being spread against it by Plant and Process Manufacturing Association of India (PPMAI).
Hitting back on the claims made by PPMAI, the stainless steel body said it seeks to promote the use of stainless steel in all walks of like.
In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier this month, PPMAI had claimed that initiation of anti-circumvention probe on stainless steel coils and sheets wider than 1,250 MM by Director General of Safeguards is at the behest of single corporate house -- Jindal Stainless Ltd.
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"Certain vested interests are spreading false rumours regarding the so called excessive protectionism to steel companies," ISDAA President N C Mathur said.
Stainless steel flat products are completely outside the ambit of Minimum Import Price (MIP) and the people making such wild allegations must examine facts before indulging in such acts, he added.
ISSDA would like to reiterate that currently there are no safeguard measures in place on stainless steel flat products and as such ISSDA fails to understand why complete non-issues are being put on centre stage and why the domestic stainless steel industry is being vilified in the public domain without any ostensible reason, Mathur said.
"What is also interesting to note is that bodies like PPMAI have a very flawed understanding of anti-dumping law which is well reflected in the irresponsible statements being issued by such bodies," he added.
Anti-Dumping is not an instrument of protectionism but a safeguard against unfair trade practices like dumping.
There is a well defined law and procedure in place for conduct of anti-dumping investigations and there is absolutely no question of any conflict with either WTO norms or the Indian law in the conduct of such investigations, he said.
It is noteworthy here that the domestic stainless steel industry is producing all possible grades for wide ranging applications and any allegation regarding non-availability of commonly used grades is either based on complete ignorance of facts or is being done with a deliberate intent to malign the domestic industry, Mathur said.
