The iron ore industry, which has been hit by the Supreme
Court clampdown to check rampant illegal mining, hopes to get some respite in
the form of duty rationalisation in exports along with freight charges in the
upcoming Union Budget, industry players have said.
“We hope the government will reduce export levy on iron
ore fines to push exports. Also, some kind of duty rationalisation should be
done in rail freight charges to give a boost to this industry,” Federation
of Indian Mineral Industries (Fimi) Southern Region Chairman Basant Poddar said
from Bangalore.
At present, while Railway freight charge for domestic iron
ore movement stands at around Rs 900 per tonne, it is around Rs 2,800 for
commodities meant for exports.
“As there is a large discrepancy in the charges, we want them to be
rationalised in the upcoming budgets (Railway and general),” Poddar said.
He said levy on iron ore fines should be reduced to encourage exports.
Another official from a Karnataka-based mining firm echoed similar views.
“In FY'12, exports of iron ore have already been down significantly. As
per our estimates, it will be down by around 55 per cent in the current
fiscal,” said the official.
Source: The Economic Times
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