Indian Custom Anti Dumping Duty









Dumping is said to occur when the goods are exported by a country to another country at a price lower than its normal value.

This is an unfair trade practice which can have a distortive effect oninternational trade. Anti dumping is a measure to rectify the situation arising out of the dumping of goods and its trade distortive effect. Thus, the purpose of
anti dumping duty is to rectify the trade distortive effect of dumping and re-establish fair trade. The use of anti dumping measure as an instrument of fair competition is permitted by
the WTO. In fact, anti dumping is an instrument for ensuring fair trade and is not a measure of protection per se for the domestic industry. It provides relief to the domestic industry against the injury caused by dumping.

Under the existing WTO arrangement, and in terms of various provisions under theCustoms Tariff Act of 1975 (as amended in 1995) andRules framed thereunder,
anti-dumping
and allied measures constitute the legal framework, within which the domestic industry can seek necessary relief and protection against dumping of goods and articles by exporting companies and firms of any country from any part of the world. These measures have assumed a great deal of relevance in India in recent times in view of the scenario arising out of unfair trade practices adopted by some of our trading partners, especially in the post-QR phase.

The Anti-Dumping and allied measures are complex legal disciplines which are often not within the easy comprehension of the trade and industry who are the users of these measures. To obviate this difficulty faced by large sections of the domestic industry, there is a need to explain the basic concepts,
legal provisions and procedural aspects in clear and easy language for theirbenefit. This will facilitate the domestic industry to avail of these remedial measures in the wake of alleged dumping and of injury caused by unfair trade practices.

However, it is always necessary to bear in mind that the anti-dumping action can never be an action based on presumption and vague complaints and only on very rare occasions suo-moto proceedings can be initiated. The requisite parameters of law have to be duly complied with and need to be fully supported and substantiated with facts and figures before any action could be initiated.

Anti dumping, in common parlance, is understood as a measure of protection for domestic industry. However, anti dumping measures do not provide protection per se to the domestic industry. It only serves the purpose of providing remedy to the domestic industry against the injury caused by the unfair trade practice of dumping. In fact, anti dumping is a trade remedial measure to counteract the trade distortion caused by dumping and the consequential injury to the domestic industry. Only in this sense, it can be seen as a protective measure. It can never be regarded as a protectionist measure.

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