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With an aim to protect domestic players from surge in imports, the commerce ministry's investigation arm the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) has recommended imposition of a 12 per cent provisional safeguard duty for 200 days on certain steel products. 

Last year in December, the DGTR started the investigation into the sudden surge in imports of 'Non-Alloy and Alloy Steel Flat Products', used in various industries, including fabrication, pipe making, construction, capital goods, auto, tractors, bicycles, and electrical panels. The investigations were conducted following a complaint from the Indian Steel Association.

The directorate in its probe has preliminarily found that there is a recent, sudden, sharp and significant increase in the imports of these products into India, causing and threatening to cause serious injury to the domestic industry/producers. The directorate in a notification has said that there exist critical circumstances, where any delay in application for provisional safeguard measures would cause damage which would be difficult to repair. There is a necessity for immediate application of provisional Safeguard measures. The finance ministry will take the final decision to impose the duty.

Safeguard measures in the form of duty or quantitative restrictions are trade remedies available to the World Trade Organization member-countries. They are imposed to provide a level-playing field to domestic players in case of sudden and significant increase in imports of a product.