The finance ministry has given time till November 14 to the directorate general of trade remedies (DGTR) for completion of the ongoing probe against alleged dumping of solar cells from China, Thailand and Vietnam.
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DGTR, an arm of the commerce ministry, has sought extension of time to complete the investigations, which was started on May 15, 2021.
“The competent authority has accepted the request of extending time for completing the on-going anti-dumping (original) investigation on imports of solar cells whether or not assembled into modules or panels originating in or exported from China, Thailand and Vietnam…for a further period till November 14, 2022,” according to an official memorandum of the department of revenue, which was sent to the DGTR.
It added that since the central government has already provided an extension on two occasions from May 15 to October 31, “no further extension” beyond November 14 can be considered.
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Indian Solar Manufacturers Association on behalf of Mundra Solar PV Limited; Jupiter Solar Power Limited; Jupiter International Limited, had filed an application seeking initiation of an anti-dumping investigation concerning the imports.
The applicant had alleged that material injury is being caused to the domestic industry due to the dumped imports by these countries. They have requested for imposition of the anti-dumping duty on the import of the subject goods originating in or exported from these countries.
While DGTR recommends the duty, the Department of Revenue takes the final decision to impose the duties.
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In international trade parlance, dumping happens when a country or a firm exports an item at a price lower than the price of that product in its domestic market.
Dumping impacts the price of that product in the importing country, hitting the margins and profits of manufacturing firms.
According to global trade norms, a country is allowed to impose tariffs on such dumped products to provide a level-playing field to domestic manufacturers.
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The duty is imposed only after a thorough investigation by a quasi-judicial body, such as DGTR, in India.
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The imposition of anti-dumping duty is permissible under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) regime.
The duty is aimed at ensuring fair trading practices and creating a level-playing field for domestic producers vis-a-vis foreign producers and exporters.
