Latest news with #SandeepPondrik
Time of India
29-04-2025
- Business
- Time of India
No alternative to China's electro chrome tape may drag India's key digital initiatives
NEW DELHI: The fate of the country's telecom connectivity initiatives boosting Digital India ambition, seems to hang in balance as the import of one of the crucial components— electro chromium steel tape— used to manufacture armoured optic fibre cable (OFC) locally, is restricted following the fallout of geopolitical tensions with China. Several chromium steel tape inbound shipments by homegrown OFC manufacturers have been lying at ports pending clearance, industry executives said on the condition of anonymity. Electro chromium-coated steel or ECCS tape is a common material used by manufacturers for shielding and armouring optical fiber cables. Armoured optic fibre cable (OFC) is used in underground deployments, and such a specification is mandatory in state-driven initiatives, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi's prestigious BharatNet program that aims to connect more than 6.5 lakh villages with high-speed Internet access. The Centre, however, is yet to take decisive steps to end the fiasco. 'The issue of import of electro chrome coated steel (ECCS) tape has been examined jointly by the Ministry of Steel and the Ministry of Communications . It was ascertained that though presently this grade of steel is not being manufactured in the country, there is the capability in the country for manufacturing of the steel. Accordingly, in a meeting with importing companies, it was decided that a fourth of the annual requirement of the ECCS will be allowed to be imported, and in the meanwhile, the companies will explore the possibilities of domestic manufacturing,' Sandeep Pondrik, secretary, Ministry of Steel, told ETTelecom. The companies, according to Pondrik, were asked to provide documents through the online portal in support of their claim of requirement, such as orders under the BharatNet project. 'Three companies have applied for the import of ECCS for the BharatNet project, out of which one company has given the required documents, and has been issued with a no-objection certificate.' Industry insiders say that "a temporary arrangement for 3 months" for a critical national program— BharatNet —is insignificant, and that the component is required for making OFC for other private sector players as well as state-owned telco-led deployments. Lately, incumbent telecom carriers— Reliance Jio , Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea (VIL) have been deploying OFC-based network aggressively on the back of fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) offering, and next-generation 5G technology-driven network rollout. 'Non availability of ECCS is severely affecting OFC manufacturers and it is likely to affect BharatNet project as well,' NK Goyal, chairman emeritus, Telecom Equipment Manufacturers Association of India (Tema) said. With the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) playing a crucial role in regulating and facilitating imports into India, there are abnormal delays in getting clearances, which are resulting in "no production" locally, Goyal added. Queries to the Piyush Goyal-headed Ministry of Commerce & Industry as well as the Ministry of Communications did not elicit any response. The third phase of the prestigious BharatNet initiative is about to take off as the state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited ( BSNL ) is in the process of awarding as many as 16 packages to successful bidders to take digital connectivity up to the last mile, in a bid to deliver multiple citizen-centric e-Services. 'The industry needs it (ECCS tape) on an immediate basis. We have been in touch with the Ministry of Steel on this issue for many months, however the solution offered seems insufficient,' RK Bhatnagar, director-general, Voice of Indian Communication Technology Enterprises (Voice) said. Delhi-based domestic industry group Tema said that the 'ECCS tape is not manufactured anywhere,' and needs to be imported from China for the continuity of digital connectivity initiatives. 'We strongly believe that the import should be fully allowed immediately. Simultaneously, the industry would welcome any local steel manufacturer, to produce and supply domestically,' Goyal added. Following an alarm and representations by domestic manufacturers, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), according to official sources, has been monitoring the situation, and may likely seek extension beyond a 3-month period from the HD Kumaraswamy-headed Ministry of Steel. Corrugated ECCS tethering acts as a protective material for OFC colour coating retention, exposure to extreme heat conditions and water immersion, as well as preventing damage from rodents and termites.
Time of India
24-04-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Govt taking all steps to ensure quality & price are right: Steel secy
Steel Secretary Sandeep Pondrik affirmed the government's commitment to ensuring fair steel prices and quality, highlighting the 12% safeguard duty on imports. Aiming for 300-million-tonne production by 2030, India is implementing quality control orders and BIS standards. PM Modi addressed raw material security concerns, urging global partnerships. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads The government is taking all measures to ensure that the quality and price of steel are "right", Steel Secretary Sandeep Pondrik said on Thursday even as he sounded confident of the country achieving the target of having 300-million tonnes steel production by 2030. Talking to PTI on the sidelines of the Steel India 2025 event here on Thursday, Poundrik defended the 12 per cent safeguard duty on steel imports."The government has already imposed a safeguard duty. It will be appropriately modified as per recommendation of DGTR. We are also ensuring that only quality steel comes into the country and low quality steel doesn't come only because of low price," he achieve that, he said, "we are bringing most of the grades of steel in quality control orders and BIS standards"."So, we are taking all measures to ensure that the quality and price of steel is right," Poundrik on Monday imposed a 12 per cent provisional safeguard duty for 200 days on certain steel products to protect domestic players from surge in cheap decision follows a recommendation for the same by the commerce ministry's investigation arm DGTR. Last month, it was suggested that the duty be imposed."The safeguard duty has been imposed by government based on the recommendation of Director General of Trade Remedies, who has recommended 12 per cent safeguard duty, that was done to prevent injury to the domestic industry because low-cost steel was being dumped in the country as per the investigation of DGTR," he that this is provisional duty that will be applicable for 200 days, he said in the meanwhile "DGTR will finalise its investigation, give its final findings to the government and based on that government will take a decision on the rate of the duty as well as the period of the duty up to which it will be implemented".Poundrik also said the government is working on an international cooperation strategy to promote the Indian steel industry by encouraging them to open offices and acquire mining assets abroad and also collaborate on technology."So we are now encouraging our companies to become international players rather than being only domestic players," he in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in said in a virtual address at the event, that getting raw materials is a "major concern" for the steel sector, and urged all to strengthen global partnerships and secure supply chains."One major concern is raw material security. We still depend on imports for nickel, coking coal, and manganese. And hence, we must strengthen global partnerships, secure supply chains, and focus on technology upgrades," Modi said India has added 21 million tonnes capacity of steel to take it to 200 million tonnes from 179 million tonnes last year, adding, "we are expecting that we will reach 300 million tonnes by 2030 (amid) the (expansion) plans of the companies and the projects under implementation, we are confident that we will reach 300 million tonnes."
