Steel prices up, industry demands regulatory body

Tribune News Service

Faridabad, June 5

The sharp increase in steel prices in the past one year has prompted local industrialists to demand a regulatory body to cap the prices.

The price of one tonne of steel (basic grade) was Rs 42,000 on October 7, 2020. In June this year, its prices increased to Rs 86,000. Sources say exports overtaking domestic supplies have resulted in the price rise.

Rajive Chawla, chairman, Integrated Association of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises of India (IAMSME), said: “Steel prices shoot up by almost 100 per cent between September 2020 and June 2021, increasing the input cost. Rising prices will delay the revival of the industry already hit hard by Covid.”

He apprehended that some units unable to cope with the rising prices would be shut down. “There is an urgent need for the government intervention.”

Ramneek Prabhkar, general secretary, Manufacturers Association Faridabad (MAF), termed the price rise “arbitrary”.

“The arbitrary price rise has become unbearable with the increase in the input cost of construction, household goods and automobile sector,” he said, seeking a regulatory body on the pattern of the electricity and insurance.

“If the government can cap the prices of basic items during the pandemic, why not the prices of steel,” said Navdeep Chawla, former president of the Faridabad Industries Association.