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The increase in steel production is linked with modern industrialization. Per capita steel consumption is commonly used to assess the level of industrialization in a country. This is because all other sectors rely on steel, which is used to make all types of machinery. The iron and steel industry of India accelerates as soon as the machine-making process gains traction. Thus, the iron and steel sector is unquestionably essential in every country’s industrial growth dynamic.
The accessibility of raw resources like iron ore and low-cost labour in India has fueled the rise of the Indian steel industry. As a result, the iron and steel industry of India has always been a key contributor to the country’s industrial output.
The Importance of The Iron and Steel Industries
- The growth of the steel sector is inextricably linked to the growth of a society. It is an indicator of modernity as the iron and steel sector serves as a backbone for the country’s physical infrastructure development.
- The iron and steel industries are critical to the regional development of the areas where they are located. Many other sectors, such as the car industry, owe their growth to the iron and steel business.
- India’s iron and steel industries have created many jobs, particularly in the areas where these enterprises are located.
- The transportation sector, such as roads, railways, airways, and canals, also benefits from the rise of the iron and steel industry.
India’s Iron & Steel Industry: Trends and Development
Steel production in India has a long history. Even though steel manufacturing began thousands of years ago in India, modern steel production technology did not operate until the nineteenth century.
The first successful effort to establish an iron and steel plant in India was made in 1875 in Barakar by the Bengal Iron and Steel Company. This was India’s first attempt to make crude iron using modern technologies.
However, following the creation of the Tata Iron and Steel Corporation in 1907, the iron and steel industries in India took off.
Integrated Steel Plant
According to the Department of Steel’s most recent data, the country has several medium and small steel units. According to the Joint Plant Committee’s recent survey in 2009-10, such units are around 3647 in number. It comprises Mini Blast Furnaces, Sponge Iron Units, Induced Furnace Units, and Rolling Mills. Steel is a competitive industry, and the Ministry of Steel keeps track of public and commercial steel plants having a production capacity of one million tonnes or more.
Tata Iron and Steel Company
Tata Steel, which has an annual capacity of manufacturing 34 million metric tonnes of raw steel, is among the world’s largest producers. The firm is a multinational steel manufacturer with significant activities in India, Europe, and Southeast Asia.
- Tata Iron and Steel Company has steel producing units in 26 nations and sells its products in more than 50 countries. It is also India’s leading steel manufacturer
- The company produces and sells raw steel in India and across the world. It sells hot, and cold rolled bundles and sheets, as well as galvanised sheets, tubing, wire rods, rebars, and bushings. Tata Steel is among those few completely integrated firms that have operations from the mining stage to distribution
Indian Iron and Steel Company (IISCO)
- In West Bengal, three steel production units were established: Hirapur for pig iron (1864), Kulti for steel (1908), and Burnpur for rolling (1937). The Indian Iron and Steel Company (IISCO) results from the merger of these factories. The Kolkata-Asansol rail line connects the three units. Hirapur produces pig iron, which is shipped to Kulti for steel production. Burnpur is home to mechanical parts. In July 1972, it was placed under government ownership.
IISCO has the following benefits:
- It can receive iron ore from the Guna mines in the Singhbhum region of Jharkhand, which is 285 kilometres away. The Mayurbhanj region of Orissa also provides some iron ore to IISCO
- For electricity, IISCO used to get coal from Jharia, which is 137 kilometres away, but currently, it relies on Damodar Valley Corporation Power
- Kolkata Port: Located 200 kilometres from Hirapur, Kolkata provides port and market services for IISCO products
- West Bengal and the surrounding territories provide low-cost labour to IISCO
Visvesvaraya Iron and Steel Works Ltd.
The erstwhile Mysore State had established the Mysore Iron and Steel Company (MISCO) in 1923. It is located in Karnataka’s Shimoga district, on the banks of the Bhadravati River.
In 1962, the government took over the plant and renamed it Visvesvaraya Iron and Steel Works Ltd. after the eminent engineer Dr Visveswaraya. This steel factory has an annual steel production capacity of 1.38 lakh tonnes. Its capacity will be increased to two lakh tonnes in the future.
In January 2019, India became the world’s second-largest steel producer, surpassing Japan. India produced 111.2 million tonnes (MT) of steel in 2019. Moreover, in FY21, the outputs of crude material and steel products were 102.49 MT and 94.66 MT, respectively. Crude steel output is expected to reach 112 MT-114 MT (million tonnes) in FY22, showing annual growth of 8-9 per cent, according to CARE Ratings. In FY21, finished steel consumption in India was 93.43 MT.
In FY21, exports of steel-related goods and services were 10.79 MT and 4.75 MT, respectively. India’s exports also increased by 121.6 per cent in April 2021 compared to the same month in the previous year.
Conclusion
The Indian steel industry is one of the world’s most promising industries. It contains a lot of iron ores, which means it has a lot of resources to draw from when it comes to raw materials.
The pace of steel production in India has been steadily increasing during the previous few years. In recent years, Orissa and Jharkhand have been highlighted as possible steel destinations in India, supplying the Indian steel industry with the raw materials it requires. There are also a number of steel businesses in India, such as Tata and ArcelorMittal, that are establishing themselves as major players in the global steel market. The Indian steel industry has seen a lot of foreign direct investment in recent years. In fact, the rate of investment has increased in recent years, and this increase has been aided to some part by the growth potential of India’s steel sector, which is seen as outstanding in the worldwide steel community.
In recent years, a number of prominent steel businesses from across the world have flocked to India to take advantage of the country’s thriving steel industry. In India, the number of steel projects has increased, implying that the number of enterprises lining up to participate in these projects will increase as well.
