'NATIONAL POLICY ON STAINLESS STEEL MUST ADDRESS RAW MATERIAL CONCERNS'

Abhyuday Jindal, CEO and MD, Jindal Stainless, which ranks among the largest producers of the alloy in India, discusses the need for a policy focus, the spectre of Chinese imports and other pressing issues before the industry. Excerpts of an exclusive conversation with Arjun Yadav

- Arjun Yadav

How is an integrated approach towards policymaking hurting the stainless-steel industry? 

The stainless steel industry has been at the receiving end of an integrated policy framework approach for the steel sector. When we talk about stainless steel, we are talking about low volume and high value products, unlike steel, and hence, stainless steel needs a dedicated focus. The industry has unique challenges and requirements that get brushed under the carpet in the overall steel framework because of an integrated approach. The integrated policy framework may cause distortions in the market by favouring certain types of products or producers over others.

The integrated policy framework may impose additional regulatory burdens or compliance costs on the stainless-steel industry, which are not relevant to it, such as regulations on recycling policies. These may affect the profitability, growth and innovation potential of the stainless-steel industry in the long run. Hence, we are waiting for the National Stainless Steel Policy to cater to the specific needs of our industry, factor in the variety of its applications and grades, besides bringing together the scattered players

The government is formulating specific policies for the stainless-steel sector. What inputs we can expect from Jindal Stainless in these consultations?