The Indian steel industry is riding the vehicle of prosperity with reports saying that India has emerged as the third largest steel maker in the world. Ministry of Steel Secretary Atul Chaturvedi says that the Indian steel industry is riding the crest of resurgence compared to the last three-four years. “The growth rate in this sector is soaring and the per capita per annum consumption level has increased from 35 kg to 48 kg in the last three years. India raised its steel production capacity to 72.76 million tonnes during the last fiscal from 66.36 million tonnes in the year ago period, emerging as the third largest steel maker in the world,” says this IAS (UP-74) officer.
‘Create an Omnibus body’
Though the steel industry is soaring new heights, it is still plagued with a few problems which act as deterrents to its growth. “Lack of an omnibus regulatory body that should take care of all issues related to the steel sector is the basic problem here. Why is China growing? In China, there is a proper regulatory body to deal with the issues related to the steel sector and steel producers do not have to run here and there to complete the required formalities in setting up a steel production unit. In India the steel producers have to undergo a lot of formalities and paperwork which ultimately leads to the dwindling of their patience and keenness of the steel producers,” says Chaturvedi. So what does our Steel Guru has to say on this? “Formulation of an omnibus board in India will help reduce the tribulations of the sector. This will enhance the pace of the work and ensure smooth functioning of the sector.
‘Cash in on’
The Steel Guru also stresses the fact that because of India’s rich iron ore reserves, with one of the most widespread deposits in the world, it has been able to lure steel producers. “Even China does not have an extensive deposit, so India has an edge over China. Also, India’s ore reserves are of superior quality. If this advantage is cashed in on, domestic steel producers for the next 30-50 years do not have to import iron ore from other centres, which means that there will be less transportation costs for them. This also means that the apprehensions regarding inadequate coking coal production, high cost of energy, infrastructure and finance may be put to rest,” says the Steel Secretary. ‘Create awareness among local people’ Chaturvedi says that land acquisition for steel projects continues to be a tough challenge and the industry players should ponder over using the large land mass that is currently available with the closed units. “The Centre and various State governments had established a number of production units for which land was acquired. Many of them are not functioning and a number of them are closed. Some private central body such as the FICCI or the CII in collaboration with the Government should prepare a record of such land which was acquired for something else but is now lying almost logged up,” says he. Talking about South Korea’s POSCO fiasco, the Steel Secretary adds that its steel plant project in Orissa, termed India’s biggest foreign direct investment, has been delayed by more than five years due to protests by farmers who are agitating against giving up their fertile agricultural land. Many of them have faced the fury of the police, got injured and killed in protests over the years. What mantra the Guru has to give? “We don’t want to happen it the Singur way and therefore we are trying to strike a balance between the two. A sense of awareness should be created among the local people and they should be explained in detail on how this will be helpful to them. This will definitely help to some extent overcome this problem,” says Chaturvedi. ‘Make your presence felt’ The Steel exponent says, “Bureaucrats enjoy the powers and are respected when they are in the hot seat. But their actual competence is recognized when they are not in the hot seat, but still have the capability to prove their worth to the market. The market has the capability to assess their worth. The bureaucratic system has the potential to filter the upright and competent ones as well as the incompetent ones in this domain. Therefore, it is important to make your presence felt by your indispensability and that can be achieved only if you are dexterous and competent in your domain.” With a chuckle, he adds, “People think that they understand the know-how of business, but they don’t realize that it is the business that knows who is sound and who is awful in the trade industry.” Post-retirement plans Chaturvedi will soon call it quits as he superannuates from his post in three to four months. What plans does he have after retirement? “Well, my daughter and son-in-law, who are surgeons, are planning to set up a nursing home soon. After my retirement, I am planning to assist them in taking care of the administration part,” says he. As he signs off, Chaturvedi says, “Well, I will spend more time in gymming as my whole family has been caught with the fitness bug and we all are exercising a lot to shed that extra kilo and keep ourselves fit.”
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
