Steel production target 110 million tons: Paswan

Guwahati, Jun 28: India has set a target to produce 110 million tones of steel by 2020 and it depends heavily on private sector to achieve the goal.

"We are targeting to increase the steel production to 110 million tones per year by 2020. Private sector will have to play a major role in steel production in the country," Union minister for fertilizer, chemicals and steel, Ram Vilas Paswan, who was in Upper Assam fertilizer town at Namrup yesterday, said.

The total production of steel stood at 42 million tones per annum as on date, he said.

"The government expects private sector steel companies to produce two-third of the targeted volume of steel," he said.

He also said the UPA government is entering into joint venture with private sector companies to boost the steel production.

According to the minister, there was no dearth of coking coal for the steel industry.

"The country has a reserve of 23 billion tones of cooking coal.

There is no dearth of iron ore too although the quality of iron ore differs from state to state and the quality of ore determines the demand for a particular variety," he said.

UNI