The Steel Ministry plans to make use of domestically manufactured steel for government contracts mandatory.

Speaking to BusinessLine on the sidelines of the Make in Steel conference here, Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh said: “We are looking at coming out with a provision in government tenders to mandate using domestically manufactured steel for the grades that are available in India. The contractor can import grades of steel that are not available in the desired quantity in the country.”

The move to mandate domestic sourcing coincides with the government’s plans to aid local steel manufacturers, who have been reeling under heavy losses due to dumping by Chinese companies.

This provision will come into force before the existing protectionist, anti-dumping duty expires, Singh said.

The government has imposed an anti-dumping duty on certain hot-rolled and cold-rolled flat steel products imported from China, South Korea, Japan and Ukraine till April 17. A provision to mandate domestic consumption is in line with existing norms and the government will not have to make any legislative changes, said Steel Secretary Aruna Sharma.

“Preferential treatment to steel made in India is completely within existing legal norms,” she said.

Minister Singh also said the government is seeking to improve the quality of steel produced by local manufacturers.

“The Bureau of Indian Standards has been engaged to set quality standards for steel manufactured in the country,” he said. “The government is working to expedite the process so that all steel consumers get the same quality of steel for a certain grade across manufacturers.”

Drafy policy

Under the Draft Steel Policy, 2017, the country aims to more than double the country’s steel production capacity to 300 million tonnes, by 2030-31.

The move to boost domestic consumption is aimed at encouraging local manufacturing.

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