Beleaguered steel ind says will nearly touch target by 2030

The steel industry stakeholders in India have said that they will be able to "nearly touch" the target of 300 million tonnes of production by 2030 in the country as envisaged by Modi-led government.
"The industry has been lately grappling with multiple challenges like stagnant demand, fund crisis, policy bottlenecks, debtor's defaults, sudden and multiple impositions of tariff and non-tariff barriers on imports, currency fluctuation and so on," Nikunj Turakhia, President, Steel Users Federation of India (SUFI) told reporters here.
The industry stakeholders, who are meeting in Goa for an annual event, said that themarch towards achieving the target is full of challenges.

Turakhia along with other industry stakeholders was addressing media on the sidelines of 5th Galvanising Coating and Profiling Summit which is underway in South Goa.
He said that the union government has set an ambitious target of 300 million tonnes of steel production which can be nearly achieved.
"That is an ambitious target. If you can achieve 20-30 per cent lower than the target, then also you have achieved something," he said.

The steel industry stakeholders during the event listed out various issues concerning the trade.
"Imposition of steel quality control order by BIS, imposition of safeguard duty and MIP on several steel products were unprecedented moves and needed a comprehensive, united and forceful representation from the various segments of steel user industry across the nation," says the statement issued by SUFI on the sidelines of the event.

"Unfortunately, the steel user and steel traders form the basic structure of steel market and can easily co-exist in harmony," the statement reads.
"However, the policy announcements or amendments to the existing policy framework should have been well deliberated, considered and agreed upon by these three pillars so as to strengthen the industry as a whole and march together to achieve the target of 300 millions tonnes steel production by 2030," it adds.
R V Sridhar, Chief Executive Officer, Essar Steel said that the per capital steel consumption in India is 60 kg which is low considering the nations like China, Japan and others.

"Still there is a scope to achieve in steel production which will also help the GDP growth," he added.