“India Steel 2017”, the 3rd edition of International Conference and Exhibition on Steel Industry was held at Mumbai Exhibition Center in Mumbai from 19th-21st April, 2017. It was inaugurated by Union Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh.
Other dignitaries present at the inauguration: Dr. Aruna Sharma – Secretary, Steel, Mr. P.K. Singh – Chairman of SAIL, Dr. Edwin Basson – Director General of World Steel Association and Dr. A Didar Singh – Secretary General of FICCI.
More Details About ‘India Steel 2017’:
- This exhibition-cum-conference has been organised by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) along with Union Ministry of Steel.
- The objective was to provide a platform for stakeholders in Steel Industry to interact with each other and explore mutually beneficial business opportunities.
- More than 200 exhibitors from the steel sector participated in this event.
- A Reverse Buyer-Seller Meet, which is first-of-its-kind in steel sector was also organised, wherein International buyers from Middle East, South East Asia, Africa, Australia and SAARC countries were invited.
PRIDE – Thrust areas of Union Ministry of Steel:
During the inaugural address, Mr. Singh mentioned about five thrust areas which Union Steel Ministry has been focusing since July 2016. These thrust areas have been summed up as
PRIDE:
P – Production and Productivity Increase
R – Research and Development
I – Indian-Made steel concept
D – Demand boost for steel
E – Excellence in Quality and Efficiency
Overview of the Indian Steel Sector
- Steel sector is one of the core industries in India.
- It contributes 2% to India’s GDP and employs nearly 6 lakh people.
- Steel production in India was 6 MT in 2016. Currently India is the third largest producer of crude steel in the world and is expected to become second largest producer by year 2020.
- Indian Govt. has set a national mission of having steel production capacity of 300 MT by 2025-26.
Indian Steel Sector Performance in FY 2016-17:
| Parameter | Growth Rate |
| Steel Exports | 102% |
| Steel Production | 9% |
| Steel Consumption | 3% |
The phenomenal growth in steel exports during 2016-17 was complimented by reduction in steel imports by 36%. As a result, India became net exporter of steel after a gap of three years.
