VISAKHAPATNAM: The Union Steel Ministry, in coordination with other Ministries, has been mulling setting up of a regulatory to enforce usage of steel as a precondition in expression of interest (EoI) for infrastructure projects.Sakuntala Chanda, editor of Steel Scenario, told TNIE that Union Steel Minister Chaudhary Birendra Singh was exploring all options to promote use of steel.
She said that the Union Minister wanted change in the mindset of consumers, who perceived steel to be expensive when compared to goods such as plastic and glass, among others and did not consider the long lifecycle of steel. Stakeholders should work along with the government to create awareness among people about advantages of steel, the minister had reportedly said.
As long as the domestic players meet the required quantity and quality standards, they would be given preference in government procurement, a source said. The government has set up a standing committee, headed by the Steel Secretary, to ensure that the policy is strictly followed and complaints of domestic players are resolved in a time-bound manner. A preferential policy treatment for domestic steel manufacturers called “domestically manufactured iron and steel products” in government contracts has been launched.
The seminar on the theme ‘Why steel?’, which Steel Scenario had organised recently in city, with support of the Ministry of Steel was a drive to create that awareness among end users connected to infrastructure, urban and rural development, housing, public utilities and mass transit system in various parts of India.
The first such seminar was held in Bhubaneswar as part of the initiative to create a platform for producers and users.
The seminar held in Visakhapatnam witnessed proactive participation from various user segments, such as Panchayat, Rural Development, National Highway Authority of India, VMRDA, Airport Authority, Indian Building Congress, Indian Institute of Architects, CREDAI-Visakhapatnam, Town and Country Planning, Smart City Visakhapatnam, etc.. The users raised various queries in connection with using more steel in their projects. The steel producers said that they could understand from the presentations and interactions that steel still remained a metal of mystery and paradox among many users.