Notification issued for Tyre Rolling Resistance, Wet Grip and Rolling Sound

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has issued a notification dated 28th June 2022, amending rule 95 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules 1989.

Why is it in news?

It mandates requirements of Rolling resistance, Wet Grip and Rolling Sound Emissions for tyres falling under classes C1 (passenger cars), C2 (light truck) and C3 (truck and bus), as defined in the Automotive Industry Standard 142:2019.

Highlights

·       The said tyres shall meet the Wet grip requirements and Stage 2 limits of Rolling Resistance and Rolling Sound Emissions, as specified in this AIS. 

·       With this regulation, India will be aligned with UNECE (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe) regulations.

·       The rolling resistance of tyres has an impact on fuel efficiency; wet grip performance influences braking performance of tyres under wet conditions and promotes vehicular safety.

·       The Rolling sound emission relates to the sound emitted from the contact between tyres in motion and the road surface.

Cess of Rs. 23,250 per tonne imposed on crude; import of crude not to be subject to this cess

Why is it in news?

Special additional excise duty/Cesses imposed on exports of petrol and diesel at the rate  of Rs 6 per litre on Petrol and Rs 13 per litre on diesel

Highlights

-Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED) of Rs 6 per litre imposed on exports of Aviation Turbine Fuel

-NO IMPACT OF ABOVE STEPS ON DOMESTIC FUEL PRICES
-Customs duty on gold increased from 10.75% to 15%; step taken to help curtail Current Account Deficit
-Notification issued on 30th June 2022

Following are the details of the Notifications issued regarding Customs duties on 30th June 2022. The details are as follows:

I   Increase of Customs Duty on Gold

Customs duty on gold has been increased from 10.75% to 15%.

There has been sudden surge in imports of gold. In the month of May, a total of 107 tonnes of gold was imported and in June also the imports have been significant. The surge in gold imports is putting pressure on current account deficit. To curb import of gold, customs duty has been increased from present 10.75% to 15%. 

II   DUTIES/CESSES ON PETROLEUM CRUDE, HSD, PETROL AND ATF

A.    Petroleum Crude

A cess of Rs 23,250 per tonne (by way of special additional excise duty-SAED) has been imposed on crude.

Crude prices have risen sharply in recent months. The domestic crude producers sell crude to domestic refineries at international parity prices. As a result, the domestic crude producers are making windfall gains. Taking this into account, a cess of Rs. 23250 per tonne has been imposed on crude. Import of crude would not be subject to this cess.

Crude is sold by domestic producer at international parity price.

This cess will have no adverse impact, whatsoever, on domestic petroleum products/fuel prices.

Further, small producers, whose annual production of crude in the preceding financial year is less than 2 million barrels will be exempt from this cess.

Also, to incentivise an additional production over preceding year, no cess will be imposed on such quantity of crude that is produced in excess of last year production by a crude producer.

As stated above, this measure would not impact crude prices or the prices of petroleum products and fuels.

B. HSD and Petrol

Special additional excise duty/Cesses has been imposed on exports of petrol and diesel at the rate  of  Rs 6 per litre on Petrol and Rs 13 per litre on diesel

While crude prices have increased sharply in recent months, the prices of HSD and Petrol have shown a sharper increase. The refiners export these products at globally prevailing prices, which are very high. As exports are becoming highly remunerative, it has been seen that certain refiners are drying out their pumps in the domestic market.

In view of this, cesses equal to Rs 6 per litre on Petrol and Rs 13 per litre on diesel have been imposed on their exports. 

These cesses would apply to any export of diesel and Petrol from the country.

As the above measure has been applied to exports, it has no implication on domestic retail prices of HSD and Petrol.

At the same time, EXPORT POLICY condition has been imposed by the DGFT that the exporters would be required to declare at the time of exports that 50% of the quantity mentioned in the shipping bill has been/will be supplied in the domestic market during the current FY.

These measures would not have any adverse impact on domestic retail prices of diesel and petrol.  Thus, domestic retail prices would remain unchanged. At the same time these measures will ensure domestic availability of the petroleum products.

 C.  Aviation Turbine Fuel

A special additional excise duty (SAED) of Rs 6 per litre has been imposed on exports of Aviation Turbine Fuel.

Like HSD and Petrol, the international prices of ATF have risen sharply. Accordingly, on the same reasoning, as stated above for diesel and petrol, a cess of Rs 6 per litre has been imposed on exports of ATF.

This measure will not have any adverse impact on domestic prices of aviation.

PM Lauds GST on Marking 5 Years

Why is it in news?

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has lauded the GST on marking 5 years and said that this is a major tax reform that furthered ‘Ease of Doing Business’ and fulfilled the vision of ‘One Nation, One Tax'.

Highlights

In response to a tweet by MyGovIndia, the Prime Minister said;

"We mark #5YearsofGST, a major tax reform that furthered ‘Ease of Doing Business’ and fulfilled the vision of ‘One Nation, One Tax.’"

PM congratulates His Excellency Yair Lapid for assuming the premiership of Israel

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has congratulated His Excellency Yair Lapid for assuming the premiership of Israel. Shri Modi has also thanked His Excellency Naftali Bennett for being a true friend of India.

In a series of tweets, the Prime Minister said;

"Warm wishes and heartiest congratulations to His Excellency @yairlapid for assuming the premiership of Israel. I look forward to continue furthering our strategic partnership as we celebrate 30 years of full diplomatic relations."

"Thank you His Excellency @naftalibennett for being a true friend of India. I cherish our fruitful interactions and wish you success in your new role."