Union Budget 2021: The domestic steel industry has demanded the government to reduce the basic customs duty on major raw materials such as anthracite coal, metallurgical coke, coking coal and graphite electrodes in Budget 2021. The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) stated in its budget recommendations for the steel industry that the growth of the steel industry is hindered by the non-availability of these raw materials in good quality and quantity.
The base customs duty on anthracite coal is currently 2.5 percent. With the recommendation of zero duty on this raw material, CII said that its good quality availability in the country is declining and the steel industry can be completely dependent on its imports on a regular basis.
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2.5% duty on metallurgical coke
Regarding metallurgical coke, CII suggested that the import duty on it be reduced from the present 5 per cent to 2.5 per cent. Low ash metallurgical coke HS Code 2704 is a major raw material for steel making. About 46 percent of the total raw material cost is of this type of metallurgical coke. The reduction in import duty on this will help the domestic steel industry to become price competitive.
