PTI reported that secondary steel makers have asked the Indian steel ministry to rollback quality control order, making compulsory to produce only Bureau of Indian Standards certified items, saying it would hit them as well as promote 'Licence Raj'.

Mr Vinod Vashisht chairman of Confederation of Indian Steel Producers Association said that "We have asked the Ministry of Steel to withdraw this quality control order otherwise it will lead to closure of small units, large scale unemployment and hike in steel rates.”

He asserted that "As secondary steel producers contribute 70% of steel items like bars, the implementation of quality control order will hinder the supply of steel items for use in infrastructure development. If the order was implemented, it would only breed corruption and harassment and licence raj."

He said that "It is unfortunate that some of the major producers, to avoid competition, have been working to destabilise the secondary sector for the past decade by raising the bogey of quality despite the fact that the products from the secondary producers have been well received in the free market.”

According to Quality Control Order of the steel ministry, manufacturing of steel including bars, rods will only be allowed after obtaining a licence from BIS.

(Sourced from PTI)