Patna, Jan. 8: Bihar, once considered a laggard state on the industrial front, can be an ideal place for setting up small and medium steel manufacturing units considering its per capita average steel consumption, believe industry experts.

Elaborating on the observation, G. Basak, executive secretary, joint plant committee (JPC) set by Union steel ministry’s to assist steel producers, said that small and medium-scale steel industries’ contribution to the country is around 60 per cent of total steel production with around 5,000 units operating across the state.

“Being the fourth largest producer of steel in the world, the production capacity is growing year-by-year. We have a huge market for steel consumption in Bihar where the average per capita consumption is higher than that of Uttar Pradesh, Bengal and Jharkhand,” Basak said while addressing a seminar on operation and future development opportunities for secondary steel sector organised by Bihar Industries Association (BIA).

The per capita average steel consumption in Bihar is around 10kg per year, which suggests that usage of steel in the lives of the Bihar’s people have increased rapidly, he said,adding that the average national per capita consumption is 45kg and in rural areas of the country it is 13kg.

Basak said there is a great opening for the growth of steel sector in Bihar provided the manufacturing units get unhindered power supply, adequate supply of iron ore through a proper supply chain of railway rakes.

“If Kerala and Andhra Pradesh can have sponge iron units despite being bereft of mines then why not Bihar?” he added.