The next twenty years of Indian steel, in one draft
Steel Secretary Sandeep Poundrik told a CII event on September 29 that the new National Steel Policy will go into the public domain for stakeholder feedback within about a week, targeting 600 million tonnes of steelmaking capacity by 2047. India's crude steel capacity stood at roughly 222 million tonnes in July 2026, so the target is close to three times today's level. It replaces the 2017 policy, which aimed at 300 million tonnes by 2030-31.
What the draft contains
Emission intensity falls to 1.54 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of crude steel by 2047, from 2.54 today.
Iron ore demand is projected at 772 million tonnes, with the ministry planning to secure high-grade reserves through foreign assets and joint ventures. Coking coal demand is put at 214 million tonnes, to be met through diversified sourcing and overseas acquisitions.
The policy is expected to carry separate targets for green steel, speciality steel and stainless for 2035 and 2047, measures against dumped imports including safeguards, and specific attention to smaller producers. A separate steel scrapping policy is under discussion.
The problem it is written against
India was a net importer of 3.5 million tonnes of finished steel between April and August, up 29.5% year on year, with China supplying 31.8% of that.
Poundrik named raw material availability and exports as the sector's main challenges as trade barriers rise elsewhere.
Why the consultation matters
A stakeholder feedback window is the one stage where a policy is still editable. Capacity targets attract the headlines, but the operative detail for most readers sits in the smaller clauses: how secondary producers are treated, what the emission pathway demands of an induction furnace unit, and whether raw material security reaches buyers who do not own mines. Those clauses are decided during consultation, not after it.