Price hike of materials puts construction industry in peril

Chennai, June 6 (UNI) The survival of the construction industry in Tamil Nadu is at stake due to unrugulated price hike in construction materials, according to Federation of All Civil Engineers Association of Tamil Nadu.

Talking to newspersons here today, Federation President N Ramarao said there was a steep and steady hike in the prices of cement, steel rods and other construction materials in the fast few months, crippling the industry. In Thanjavur, Thiruvaroor and Nagapattinamm districts, construction works have come to a standstill since the last one week.

From January 2006, there was a steady rise in the market price of cement from Rs 135 per bag to Rs 240 now, registering a hike of over 77 per cent. Urging the government to rein in the unregulated hike, Mr Ramarao said the government should take the initiative to import cement.

He alleged that a carter of cement companies were behind the increase.

Similarly, the price of sand shot up from Rs 11 per cft to Rs 14 now. Adding to the woes of the state-- a sand deficit region, there is also illegeal export to Kerala and Karnataka. In order to meet the additional reqirement of sand, the governemnt should relax the mining licence and the quarries should be allowed to convert the stone dust into 'articficial sand', he said.

He also alleged that as per the existing Building Plan Approval norms one is forced to approach both the local body and the Local Planning Authority, making the entire process complex for the common man. There should be a specific power demarcation between them, he wanted.

UNI