The Ministry of Steel released the draft National Steel Policy 2017.
What is the need for the policy?
The steel sector presently employs about 25 lakh people and has a capacity of little over 120 million tonnes.
Steel production in the country has witnessed an annual average growth of 8.3% between 2000-01 and 2015-16.
However, the industry has been facing challenges due to slow economic growth and idle steel capacity globally.
India has been a net importer of finished steel every year since 2007-08 except 2013-14.
Growth of the Indian steel industry has been affected due to delays in land acquisition.
The draft Policy seeks to create a self-sufficient steel industry that is technologically advanced and globally competitive.
What are the objectives?
Increasing crude steel capacity to 300 metric tonne (MT) by 2030-31.
Increasing per capita steel consumption to 160 kg by 2030-31 (currently 61 kg)
Increasing domestic availability of washed coking coal and reducing import of coking coal to 50% by 2030-31
Becoming a net exporter of steel by 2025-26.
What are the guidelines?
Steel demand and capacity - The policy envisages to more than double the India’s domestic steel production capacity to 300 million tonnes by 2030-31.
Creation of such additional capacity will require extensive mobilization of natural resources, finances, manpower, and infrastructure and a capital investment of about Rs 10 lakh crore
Land requirement - In order to increase steel production capacity, around 91,000 acres of land will be required.
The Steel Ministry will coordinate with respective state governments to ensure timely availability of litigation-free land to the industries.
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) – The draft policy seeks to improve availability of raw materials by providing long term linkages with the coal industry, and adopt energy efficient technologies.
The Steel Ministry has proposed setting up greenfield steel plants along India’s coastline to tap cheap imported raw materials such as coking coal and export the output in a more cost-effective manner.
Coking Coal - To cut down reliance on expensive imports of coking coal, gas-based steel plants and technologies such as electric furnaces to bring down the use of coking coal in blast furnaces are proposed.
It anticipates a requirement of Rs.10 lakh crore of fresh investments to meet that goal and expects at least 11 lakh new jobs being created in the process.
It lays out two alternatives of its vision i.e to create a globally competitive steel industry that promotes inter-sectoral growth or to create a self-sufficient steel industry that is technologically advanced, globally competitive and promotes inclusive growth.
