Ludhiana: Businessmen meet new steel minister, demand solution to their problems

LUDHIANA: A delegation of city businessmen led by furnace industry representatives met the new Union minister of steel, Ramchandra Prasad Singh at his office in New Delhi recently. The businessmen held a brief discussion with the minister over the issues being faced by the industry especially the factories located in Punjab.
The major point of discussion in the meeting was the setting up of a steel regulatory authority, which should monitor rates of steel raw material and take action against the persons involved in artificial hike in the rates of steel.
K K Garg, president of Induction Furnace Association of North India (IFANI), who was leading the delegation said, “We met the Union steel minister Ramchandra Prasad Singh today along with welcoming him for assuming the charge of the ministry, we also discussed the problems being faced by businessmen, specially those belonging to the secondary steel sector. We also apprised him about the issue of rising prices of steel raw material in the country and other hardships being faced by industrialists like increasing rates of power, shortage of industrial grade oxygen gas and dropping sales. The minister gave us a patient hearing and also assured that our problems will be considered by him and after discussing with the officials concerned the solutions too will be provided at the earliest.”
Meanwhile, city businessmen are of the view that steel minister should fulfil their long pending demand of forming a steel prices regulators in the country. Jagbir Singh Sokhi, president of Sewing Machine Development Club, said, “It is our request to the new Union minister for steel that the first and foremost step he should take for the welfare of industry is to setup a steel prices regulator to keep a check on the rates of steel, which are being artificially inflated by some entities who for their greed are hurting the micro small and medium enterprises (MSME). The regulator must also have the powers to take strict action against the steel producer, distributor, middle man and everyone who is engaged in the sale and purchase of the steel raw material, as this is the only way the situation can be countered.”