Builders to import cement from Pak, S Korea, Singapore and Taiwan

Nagpur, Aug 19 (UNI) Builders in the country will import cement from several countries, including Pakistan, to counter the increase in the prices of the product in the domestic market.

Besides Pakistan, cement was also likely to be imported from South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan, according to Pune Construction Engineering Research Foundation (PCERF) president K P Baney.

The central government had agreed to allow the imports on the condition that the product had an international certification, Mr Baney told newsmen here yesterday.

The cost of the imported cement would be much less than that in the domestic market, Mr Baney added. While cement was being sold for Rs 270 per bag in India, a bag imported from Pakistan, with a basic price of Rs 160, would cost around Rs 175 after duties, freight and octroi, he said.

''An effort was made earlier to import cement from Pakistan, but the government refused to allow delivery after the ship carrying the consignment reached port in Mumbai, on the ground that the product did not meet BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) norms. We returned the entire lot, and even paid Rs 15 crore towards demurrage. The government has, however, relented now, one of the reasons being that it is itself incurring additional financial burden because of the price rise,'' Mr Baney, who heads the family's construction business in Pune, said.

Describing the price rise in the domestic market as 'artificial,' Mr Baney said that some increase was acceptable due to rising input costs, but a hike from Rs 190 per bag about eight months ago to Rs 270 was totally unjustified. ''More so if we take into consideration the fact that cement is now being blended with fly ash. The price rise is man-made, and adds Rs 40 per square foot to the construction cost,'' he added.

The issue was discussed at a recent meeting in New Delhi of the Construction Industry Development Council (CIDC) of the Planning Commission, PCERF Vice President R R Dhoot, who is also a member of the council, said. '' We asked the Central government to allow import of cement as it is a free commodity. With imports allowed now, the prices in India are likely to fall over the next two months,'' he said.

Mr Baney and Mr Dhoot were here to inform reporters about Constro-2007, an international exhibition on construction machinery, material, methods and projects scheduled to be held at Pune from November 28 to December 2. The exhibition, now held every two years, is the tenth in the series and is expected to be the largest this year, with participation likely from 250 exhibitors from India as well as China, Germany, Italy and Singapore, besides three lakh visitors, they informed.

UNI