Export tax to conserve raw materials

PTI reports

Amid a threat of Chinese boycott of Indian iron ore due to the imposition of a Rs300-per-tonne duty on Indian ore exports, Finance Minister P Chidambaram on 29 March defended the measure saying it will “conserve” the country’s raw materials for domestic steel units.

“There is no controversy. As I said in my budget speech, it (the tax) is intended to conserve raw materials for our own steel industry and at the same time, create some revenues taking note of the fact that the prices are ruling very high,” Chidambaram said here after inaugurating the full-fledged branch of Bank of India, where the Communist giant initiated the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) for the first time.

If this is an argument, where is the end?