The Centre has extended the deadline to impose higher tax on imports from the United States. The Department of Central Board of Excise and Customs issued a notification in this regard, stating that the higher import duties on 29 items, as an retaliatory measure, was deferred till May 2, 2019.

The Government of India had decided to impose duties on imports of 29 US products after the Trump administration decided to impose higher custom duties on certain steel and aluminium products that the US imports from India.

The decision to impose retaliatory duties was deferred about six times since June 2018, when the issue first came up.

According to sources, the Indian side pushed the dates further as both sides have been engaged in negotiations of a deal that would satisfy both sides. However, the US has gone further with its intention for the withdrawal of the GSP (generalised system of preferences) for India.

However, reports are rife that several US Congress members have urged the country’s government to review its order on GSP for India.

Meanwhile, it was also learnt that an Indian delegation was likely to visit the US for more discussion on the subject and resolve the issue. The decision was said to be taken after a meeting was held between officials from India’s Department of Commerce and stakeholders.

It is pertinent to mention here that as part of the imposition of higher import duties, the Indian government had last year notified higher tariffs on several products. For instance, the import duty on walnut was hiked to 120 percent from 30 percent; the duty on chickpeas, Bengal gram (chana) and masur dal was raised to 70 percent from 30 percent, and the levy on lentils was raised to 40 percent from 30 percent. However, soon there was a notification from the Indian government deferring the implementation of the decision.