(PTI)
Union Steel Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday urged industry players to improve the quality of their products in order to become more competitive in the global markets. In a meeting with the CEOs of steel industry, Pradhan also said the domestic industry has come a long way in terms of capacity building, quality assurance and technology upgradation, according a statement issued by the Ministry of Steel.
“The industry has to mark its place in the world, by being more competitive, improving the quality, and undertaking more exports,” the statement quoted the minister as saying. The minister — who recently led a delegation to Russia to discuss bilateral cooperation in the areas of oil and gas, steel and coal — informed the industry players that there are large scope and demand for Indian products in the international markets. The industry must do more value addition and fulfil the requirements of the niche sector, he said, adding that the industry also needs to diversify its sources of raw material procurement so as to bring down the costs.“The industry leaders also raised several issues, (with the minister) including financing, easy availability of raw materials, free trade agreements, taxation, mining contracts, etc,” the statement said.
