The Hindu Business Line : Metallic scrap imports: Pre-shipment inspection certificate made mandatory

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Metallic scrap imports: Pre-shipment inspection certificate made mandatory

Our Bureau

Unshredded metallic scrap imports would be allowed, but only through specified major ports and ICD Tughalakabad.

New Delhi , Oct. 15

THE Government on Friday further tightened its import policy on metallic scrap. It has now made pre-shipment inspection certificate mandatory for all metallic scrap imports into the country. Hitherto such certificates were required only when the scrap originated from countries affected by rebellion or war.

"All scrap coming into the country (from anywhere in the world) will have to have pre-inspection certificates. Shipping companies transporting the scrap will have to ensure that there is a pre-shipment inspection certificate from our approved agencies before they load the scrap at the port of origin," Mr Kamal Nath, Commerce and Industry Minister, told reporters here after attending a high-powered meeting.

Senior officials of the Ministries of Home, Steel, Finance and Commerce and Industry attended the meeting.

Meanwhile, the standoff between the Directorate-General of Foreign Trade and the Finance Ministry on allowing unshredded metallic scrap to be imported has to a large extent been sorted out.

Unshredded metallic scrap would be allowed for import into the country, but only through specified major ports and ICD Tughalakabad. As much as 92 per cent of metallic scrap imports into the country are in unshredded form. The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) would soon spell out procedures for inspection of consignments by customs authorities.

"Earlier, the foreign trade policy had said that unshredded scrap would be allowed only through 12 major ports and ICD Tughalakabad. Today we have decided to allow such scrap even through Pipavav and Mundra. This makes it in all 15 ports," a senior Finance Ministry official told Business Line. A large number of consignments of metallic scrap are now moving towards Indian ports.

Mr Kamal Nath also told reporters that show-cause notices would be issued to importers of metallic scrap who had violated the import regulations and procedures.

The Commerce Minister also appealed to importers of metallic scraps, who have discovered explosives and ammunitions in their import consignments and refrained from going to the police, to voluntarily declare such explosives to the police.

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