Stringent Condition of "Melt and Pour" to Stop Good Quality and Competitive Price Imports Released

Ø Domestically Manufactured Iron & Steel Products (DMI&SP) Policy, against HS Codes 7301, 7302, 7303 and 7308 to 7326, the existing requirement of “50% Domestic Value Addition” shall be substituted with “Melt & Pour”

“Melt & Pour” (often misspelled or referred to as “merit and pour”) is a key condition under India’s Domestically Manufactured Iron & Steel Products (DMI&SP) Policy for qualifying steel as domestically manufactured, especially in government procurement.

Definition

Melt & Pour refers to steel that has been produced in a steel-making furnace (melted into liquid crude steel) and then poured into its first solid shape (such as a slab, billet, ingot, or similar semi-finished form).

The location of this process is called the Country of Melt and Pour (COM). Under the policy, the COM must be India (including Special Economic Zones). This establishes the original origin of the crude steel.

Role as a Condition for Domestic Value Addition / Domestic Preference

In the revised DMI&SP Policy 2025 (notified by the Ministry of Steel, with updates including December 2025), “Melt & Pour in India” has become a primary eligibility condition for many iron and steel products listed in Appendix A (especially those under HS Chapter 72, such as flat-rolled products, bars, rods, wires, and various finished steels).

Earlier versions of the policy mainly relied on a minimum Domestic Value Addition (DVA) percentage (commonly 15–50%, calculated as the total value of the item minus the value of imported content, expressed as a percentage).

The updated policy strengthens or, for many product categories, replaces or supplements the pure DVA threshold with the stricter Melt & Pour in India requirement. This ensures the steel originates from crude steel melted and poured in India, rather than allowing imported semi-finished steel that undergoes only limited further processing in India to qualify as “domestic.”3

Domestic Value Addition itself is defined as:

The amount of value added in India = [Total value of the item to be procured (excluding net domestic indirect taxes) – Value of imported content (including all customs duties)] ÷ Total value of the item × 100%.

DVA and local content are used interchangeably in the policy. For some downstream/fabricated products (e.g., certain pipes, tubes, structures, or railway items under Chapters 73/86), a minimum DVA percentage (often 50%) continues to apply alongside or instead of pure Melt & Pour.

Purpose and Scope

Promotes full domestic manufacturing under “Make in India” / Atmanirbhar Bharat by preventing circumvention via imported steel with only minor Indian value addition.

Applies to government ministries, departments, agencies, and funded projects for procurements of iron & steel products above a threshold (typically ₹5 lakh per item).

Preference is given to compliant domestic suppliers; self-certification (via affidavit) of Melt & Pour and/or DVA is required, with supporting documents like mill test certificates and heat records.

In short, Melt & Pour in India is the foundational origin condition that ensures steel qualifies for domestic preference, working together with (or in place of) quantified Domestic Value Addition requirements under the current DMI&SP Policy.

[Ministry of Steel Notification G.S.R. 720(E) dated 7 August, 2026]

G.S.R. 720(E).- The following amendment to Appendix-A of the Domestically Manufactured Iron & Steel Products Policy-2025, published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3, Sub-section (i), vide G.S.R. 904(E), dated 17th December, 2025, is hereby published for general information:

In Appendix-A of the Domestically Manufactured Iron & Steel Products (DMI&SP) Policy, against HS Codes 7301, 7302, 7303 and 7308 to 7326, the existing requirement of “50% Domestic Value Addition” shall be substituted with “Melt & Pour”. Accordingly, the revised Appendix-A of the DMI&SP Policy, incorporating the above amendment, is reproduced below:

Appendix-A List of iron and steel products which can only be procured from domestic sources
Sl.No.	Iron & Steel Products	HS Code	Condition
1	Flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel, of a width of 600 mm or more, hot rolled, not clad, plated or coated	7208	Melt & Pour
2	Flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel, of a width of 600 mm or more, cold rolled (cold-reduced), not clad, plated or coated	7209	Melt & Pour
3	Flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel, of a width of 600 mm or more, clad, plated or coated	7210	Melt & Pour
4	Flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel, of a width of less than 600 mm, not clad, plated or coated	7211	Melt & Pour
5	Flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel, of a width of less than 600 mm, clad, plated or coated	7212	Melt & Pour
6	Bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils, of iron or non-alloy steel	7213	Melt & Pour
7	Other bars and rods of iron or non-alloy steel, not further worked than forged, hot rolled, hot-drawn or hot-extruded, but including those twisted after rolling	7214	Melt & Pour
8	Other bars and rods of iron or non-alloy steel	7215	Melt & Pour
9	Angles, shapes and sections of iron or non-alloy steel	7216	Melt & Pour
10	Wire of iron or non-alloy steel	7217	Melt & Pour
11	Flat-rolled products of stainless steel, of a width of 600 mm or more	7219	Melt & Pour
12	Flat-rolled products of stainless steel, of a width of less than 600 mm	7220	Melt & Pour
13	Bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils, of stainless steel	7221	Melt & Pour
14	Other bars and rods of stainless steel; angles, shapes and sections of stainless steel	7222	Melt & Pour
15	Wire of stainless steel	7223	Melt & Pour
16	Flat-rolled products of other alloy steel, of a width of 600 mm or more, including electrical steel	7225	Melt & Pour
17	Flat-rolled products of other alloy steel, of a width of less than 600 mm, including electrical steel	7226	Melt & Pour
18	Bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils, of other alloy steel	7227	Melt & Pour
19	Other bars and rods of other alloy steel; angles, shapes and sections, of other alloy steel; hollow drill bars and rods, of alloy or non-alloy steel	7228	Melt & Pour
20	Wire of other alloy steel	7229	Melt & Pour
21	Sheet piling of iron or steel, whether or not drilled, punched or made from assembled elements; welded angles, shapes and sections, of iron or steel	7301	Melt & Pour
22	Rails, railway or tramway track construction material of iron or steel	7302	Melt & Pour
23	Tubes, pipes and hollow profiles, of cast iron	7303	Melt & Pour
24	Tubes, pipes and hollow profiles, seamless, of iron (other than cast iron) or steel	7304	50% Domestic Value Addition
25	Other tubes and pipes (for example, welded, riveted or similarly closed), having circular cross-sections, the external diameter of which exceeds 406.4 mm, of iron or steel	7305	50% Domestic Value Addition
26	Other tubes, pipes and hollow profiles (for example, open seam or welded, riveted or similarly closed), of iron or steel	7306	50% Domestic Value Addition
27	Tube or pipe fittings (for example, connectors/couplings, elbow sleeves), of iron or steel	7307	50% Domestic Value Addition
28	Structures (excluding prefabricated buildings of heading 9406) and parts of structures	7308	Melt & Pour
29	Reservoirs, tanks, vats and similar containers for any material (other than compressed or liquefied gas), of a capacity exceeding 300 L, whether or not lined or heat insulated, but not fitted with mechanical or thermal equipment	7309	Melt & Pour
30	Tanks, casks, drums, cans, boxes and similar containers, for any material (other than compressed or liquefied gas), of a capacity not exceeding 300 L, whether or not lined or heat-insulated, but not fitted with mechanical or thermal equipment	7310	Melt & Pour
31	Containers for compressed or liquefied gas, of iron or steel	7311	Melt & Pour
32	Stranded wire, ropes, cables, plaited bands, slings and the like, of iron or steel, not electrically insulated	7312	Melt & Pour
33	Barbed wire of iron or steel; twisted hoop or single flat wire, barbed or not, and loosely twisted double wire, of a kind used for fencing, of iron or steel	7313	Melt & Pour
34	Grill, netting and fencing, of iron or steel wire; expanded metal of iron or steel	7314	Melt & Pour
35	Chain and parts thereof, of iron or steel	7315	Melt & Pour
36	Anchors, grapnels and parts thereof, of iron or steel	7316	Melt & Pour
37	Articles of iron and steel	7317	Melt & Pour
38	Articles of iron and steel	7318	Melt & Pour
39	Articles of iron and steel	7319	Melt & Pour
40	Springs and leaves for springs, of iron or steel	7320	Melt & Pour
41	Stoves, ranges, grates, cookers (including those with subsidiary boilers for central heating), barbecues, braziers, gas-rings, plate warmers and similar non- electric domestic appliances, and parts thereof, of iron or steel	7321	Melt & Pour
42	Radiators for central heating, not electrically heated, and parts thereof, of iron or steel; air heaters and hot air distributors, not electrically heated, incorporating a motor-driven fan or blower, and parts thereof, of iron or steel	7322	Melt & Pour
43	Tables and similar household articles and parts thereof, of iron or steel	7323	Melt & Pour
44	Sanitary ware and parts thereof, of iron or steel	7324	Melt & Pour
45	Other cast articles of iron or steel	7325	Melt & Pour
46	Electrical steel and other articles of iron or steel	7326	Melt & Pour
47	Railway or tramway passenger coaches, not self-propelled	8605	50% Domestic Value Addition
48	Railway or tramway goods vans and wagons, not self-propelled	8606	50% Domestic Value Addition
49	Parts of railway or tramway locomotives or rolling-stock; such as bogies, bissel- bogies, axles and forged wheels, and parts thereof	8607	50% Domestic Value Addition

'Melt & Pour' in the above cases shall mean that the steel used in producing these products shall comply with the definition of 'melt & pour'; and the product shall be entirely made within the country.

2. All other provisions of the DMI&SP Policy, 2025, including Appendix-A, shall remain unchanged.

[F. No.8(2)/2023-ID-I]