The Indian government and representatives from sectors like textiles, auto parts, plastics, and solar are contesting the US Trade Representative’s (USTR) Section 301 investigations in public hearings in Washington that start this week.
“Indian officials and industry groups will testify over the next two weeks to push back against claims of labour violations and market-distorting overcapacity, which could potentially lead to new tariffs,” a source tracking the matter told businessline.
The hearings are scheduled for April 28–29 regarding forced labour and May 5–8 for structural excess capacity. The USTR launched these probes in March 2026, alleging that trade surpluses and inadequate protection against forced-labour imports in certain economies, including India, burden American commerce through artificially low-priced competition and displaced domestic production.
‘Mischaratcterised’
On allegations of structural excess capacity, the Indian government pointed out in its submission that the USTR had incorrectly linked it to trade surplus. “India submits that in each of the sectors identified in the notice, namely, solar modules, textiles and apparel, health, construction goods, automotive goods, petrochemicals and steel, the initiation notice mischaracterises India’s industrial structure and does not take into account domestic demand-based capacity investment and future growth forecasts,” it said.
In its submission, the Indian Steel Association argued that India’s steel sector does not contribute to global overcapacity nor is it implicated in forced labour under authoritative US benchmarks.
“It is respectfully submitted that India’s steel sector should be excluded from the scope of any remedial measures under Section 301, as India’s inclusion would neither serve the stated objective of addressing overcapacity as well as forced labour, nor be supported by the underlying data/evidence,” it stated.
Industry bodies, such as the Plastics Export Promotion Council, further argued that India’s domestic laws already prohibit forced labour and that its top plastic imports do not appear on US labour watchlists.
‘Transparent rules’
Supporting this stance, Texprocil and the Indian Solar Manufacturers’ Association (ISMA) noted that India’s Constitution and corporate regulatory frameworks ensure supply chain transparency. They argued that commercial practices, including third-party audits and supplier codes of conduct, prevent labour abuses, making any punitive Section 301 measures unwarranted.
“These requirements are further strengthened by commercial practices adopted by Indian textile companies, including supplier codes of conduct, contractual obligations, and third party audits, which prohibit forced labour and require ongoing compliance across the value chains,” the Texprocil submission noted.
The Indian solar products sector be cannot be said to burden or restrict United States commerce and accordingly, the application of measures under Section 301 in respect of this sector would not be warranted, ISMA stated.
Although Section 301(b) investigations usually must be completed within 12 months, the USTR hopes to conclude the investigations before Section 122 tariffs expire July 24. The US government imposed a temporary 10 per cent tariff (under Section 122) on all trade partners after the US Supreme Court invalidated the reciprocal tariffs.
Published on April 28, 2026