NEW DELHI: The government has no control over the steel price but keeps a tab on it to ensure there is no monopoly on trading of the metal, Union Steel Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Pradhan said that steel is a free commodity and it is being imported too. "The government has no control over steel price. Our role is to see that there is no monopoly in steel trade. The price is determined by market demands," he said during the Question Hour.
The minister said that steel is a deregulated sector and the matters of procurements, operations, sales, marketing and investments etc., are taken by companies concerned based on commercial considerations, market dynamics, etc. "The usage of scrap by steel producing units and scrap processing units is a commercial decision of units. The scrap can be procured domestically or through imports," he said.
Pradhan said there are no restrictions on importing or domestically procuring scrap by steel producing units. The government does not regulate steel scrap supply situation in the country.