The Aluminium Association of India has requested the government to impose a 15% basic customs duty on all aluminum products to protect domestic manufacturers from surging, low-quality imports.

In a letter to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) and the Ministry of Finance, the association warned that India risks becoming a dumping ground for global aluminum surplus, predicting imports could meet 54% of domestic demand by the fiscal year 2026 without intervention.

The Aluminium Association of India also called for strict, global-standard quality controls on imported scrap, noting that cheap, potentially hazardous scrap, primarily from the US and the EU, is a growing concern.

The association expects these proposed measures could attract more than Rs 2 lakh crore in new investments in the near future and up to Rs 20 lakh crore by 2047.