Anti Dumping Duty on Saccharin - Government Amends Non-Existing Notification - Resurrection Redefined!
SACCHARIN: A white crystalline powder, having a taste about 500 times sweeter than cane sugar, used as a calorie-free sweetener.
Saccharin's sweetness was accidentally discovered by Ira Remsen, a professor at Johns Hopkins University, and Constantin Fahlberg, a research fellow working in Remsen's lab. In 1879, while working with coal tar derivatives, Remsen discovered saccharin's sweetness at dinner. Remsen and Fahlberg jointly published their discovery in 1880. However, in 1884, Fahlberg went on to patent and mass-produce saccharin without ever mentioning Remsen. Fahlberg grew wealthy while Remsen remained sour.
A century and more down the line, it appears the Chinese are bent on stealing the sweetness from Indian saccharin industry by dumping the product in India. Our government would have nothing of it and so anti dumping duty was imposed provisionally on saccharin originating in or exported from China. This provisionally imposed duty by Notification No. 54/2006-Cus dated 06.06.2006 was to be effective till 5th December 2006.
Nobody bothered when the notification ceased to have effect from 06.12.2006. After a cool three months, definitive anti dumping duty was imposed by Notification No. 41/2007 dated 19.03.2007, of course retrospectively with effect from 06.06.2006.
After about three years, the Government superseded Notification No. 41/2007 and re-imposed the anti dumping duty by Notification No. 136/2009 dated 09.12.2009 and this notification clearly stated that the notification would remain valid till 05.06.2011.
So the position is:
++ Notification No. 41/2007 which could have been valid till 05.06.2011, was superseded on 09.12.2009.
++ Notification No. 136/2009 which superseded Notification No. 41/2007 was valid till 05.06.2011.
++ There is no valid notification for anti dumping duty on saccharin with effect from 06.06.2011.
Now the Government wanted to extend this anti dumping duty on saccharin for another year till 05.06.2012. And for that they amended Notification No. 41/2007 which does not exist! They should have amended the current Notification No. 136/2009, which also expired on 05.06.2011, but since resurrection is a favourite activity of the Board, notwithstanding the recent circular, that could have been a better option!
Anyway the present position is that the Government thinks that it has extended the Anti Dumping Duty on saccharin from China till 05.06.2012, but the fact is, as of now there is no anti dumping duty on saccharin! The Notification factory in the Board needs urgent repairs.
Notification No. , Dated: July 19, 2011