Govt. committed to accelerate growth of steel industry: Beni Prasad Verma

Union Minister of Steel Beni Prasad Verma has said that Government is committed to accelerate growth of steel industry through various policy measures.

Chairing the meeting of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee attached to his Ministry here, he said that at present, the crude capacity for steel production is 96 million tonnes per annum. Steel production capacity is being expanded gradually. It is proposed to expand steel production capacity to 300 million tonnes by 2025.

A roadmap for achieving the target of 300 million tonnes of steel production is under preparation. Public as well as private sector steel plants need to be involved to take necessary steps for achieving the target. This will result in increased employment both in public and private sector, the Minister added.

Verma said one of the objectives of the meeting is to sensitise about need for growth of steel industry in Kerala.

The review of functioning of MOIL Ltd. and MSTC Ltd, the two Miniratna Category - I PSUs under the Ministry of Steel were the agenda of the meeting.

He further expressed his satisfaction on performance of both the companies.

He also appreciated that both the companies have been consistently showing excellent results for the past several years. MOIL is taking effective measures to meet the domestic demand of manganese ore by implementation of various mining projects such as deepening of existing vertical shafts and sinking of new shafts.

During the year 2012-13, MOIL Ltd earned Profit after Tax of Rs. 431.72 crores which is higher by 5.10 percent as compared to previous year.

Similarly, MSTC earned Profit After Tax of Rs. 130.73 crores which is 10.4 percent higher than the previous year. MSTC Ltd has proposed to set up a shredding plant in India for shredding of used cars, scooters and other miscellaneous goods to add value to recycled scrap.

The members were briefed about the steel scenario in the country, functioning of the both companies and the performance of these companies on various developmental topics.

Some of the members suggested that the companies should make more efforts to increase their presence in the backward areas in the field of health, education, drinking water, and other welfare activities.