Jharkhand is an important steel producing State and will continue to show strong growth in this sector in the future. The Union Government has proposed investment of Rs 37,000 crore for development and expansions of mines in the State. Union Minister of Steel and Mines Narendra Singh Tomar provided the information the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, while replying to a question raised by Rajya Sabha member Parimal Nathwani.
The minister stated that Steel Authority of India ltd (SAIl) has a proposal of investing more than Rs 19,000 crore in Jharkhand on modernisation of Bokaro Steel Plant, expansion of Gua and Chiria mines etc.
Further, Government of India, NMDC (a Central Public Sector Enterprise under Ministry of Steel) and Government of Jharkhand have also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to set up a 3 Million Ton Per Annum (MTPA) green field steel plant through a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) in Jharkhand at an estimated cost of Rs 18,000 crore, said the minister.
Nathwani wanted to know about the rank of India in steel production at global level and the current and estimated crude steel production capacity of India in the next three years as well as government’s initiatives for development of steel sector in Jharkhand.