C6E-IRON AND STEEL INDUSTRY

IRON AND STEEL INDUSTRY

Hello friends, we know that Iron and steel is a basic industry and forms the backbone of industrial development in any country. It provides raw material for making industrial machinery, electrical machinery, defence equipments, railway tracks, railway engines, bridges, dams, shops, automobiles, houses and a host of other industrial and consumer goods. Infact, the quantity of steel produced and its per capita consumption reflects the level of industrialisation and economic development of a country.

Let us see three video clippings on how steel industry functions. Shall we?

A BRIEF HISTORY OF IRON AND STEEL INDUSTRY IN INDIA:

The art of steel making was known to Indians since ancient timesas is evident from the famous iron pillar in Delhi, which dates back to AD 350. The first attempt to produce iron and steel on modern lines , was made in 1830 at Porto Novo (Tamil Nadu). But this mill was closed down in 1866.

A humble beginning of the modern steel industry was reached in India at Kulti in Bengal in 1870. But the conception of larger production became visible with the establishment of steel plant in Jamshedhpur in Bihar in 1907. It started production in 1912. The came Burnpur and Bhadravathi Steel plants in 1919 and 1923 respectively. It was, however, only after Independence that the Steel industry was able to find a strong foothold . Excluding the Jameshedhpur plantof the Tatas, all are in the public sector and looked after Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) .

TISCO Steel Plant

Bhilai anf Bokaro Steel plants were set up with Soviet collaboration. Durgapur and Rourkela came up with British and West German technical expertise, respectively.

Iron and Steel industry characteristically is a heavy industry. All its raw materials are heavy and collossal. They encompass iron-ore, coking coal and limestone. Location of this industry is thus governed by its proximity to raw materials , predominantly coking coal. The finished products in turn are also heavy and need efficient transport system for their distribution. The Chhotanagupur Plateau bordering West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh , therefore has been the natural nerve-centre of this industry. Iron and Steel Industry is also a basic or key . It forgoes the heavy machines and tools industry. Umpteen light, medium and small cottage industries depend on it, as a reindex of modernisation and industrialisation of a country. The industry also necessitates enormous investment , staple infrastructure , principally able means of up-to-date transport and communication , not leaving out plentiful fuel or power supply. However it does not directly create enough jobs, adjusting with huge investments. It demands incessant updation of technology, "R and D" (Research and Development) support, and most importantly a long-awaiting time before it begins to produce dividends. All these contemplations made the government to enter this key industry in a large scale on its own, not withstanding its natural shrotcomings or limitations . Vishakpatanam Steel plant has the advantage of importing quality coking coal from abroad and is at ease in exporting its products straight to the world market. In 1997-98, it had produced 2.2 million tones of pig iron . The plant has been able to uphold international standards of competence . In the same year it had exported almost 0.8 million tones of steel and pig iron, fetching foreign exchange of 600 crores.

MINI STEEL PLANT: As name suggests, these plants are of rather smaller size. They produce steel in electric furnaces, using scrap and sponge iron. They produce both mild and alloy steel of given specifications. In 1997-98 they had yielded 8.5 million tones of crude steel . Virtually 200 mini plants have been working day-in and day-out in the country.
Steel industry reforms – particularly in 1991 and 1992 – have led to strong and sustainable growth in India’s steel industry. Since its independence, India has experienced steady growth in the steel industry, thanks in part to the successive governments that have supported the industry and pushed for its robust development. Further illustrating this plan is the fact that a number of steel plants were established in India, with technological assistance and investments by foreign countries. In 1991, a substantial number of economic reforms were introduced by the Indian government. These reforms boosted the development process of a number of industries – the steel industry in India in particular – which has subsequently developed quite rapidly.

The 1991 reforms allowed for no licenses to be required for capacity creation, except for some locations. Also, once India’s steel industry was moved from the listing of the industries that were reserved exclusively for the public sector, huge foreign investments were made in this industry. Yet another reform for India’s steel industry came in 1992, when every type of control over the pricing and distribution system was removed, making the modern Indian Steel Industry extremely efficient, as well as competitive. Additionally, a number of other government measures have stimulated the growth of the steel industry, coming in the form of an unrestricted external trade, low import duties, and an easy tax structure.

STEEL COMPANIES IN INDIA:
India continually posts phenomenal growth records in steel production. In 1992, India produced 14.33 million tones of finished carbon steels and 1.59 million tones of pig iron. Furthermore, the steel production capacity of the country has increased rapidly since 1991 – in 2008, India produced nearly 46.575 million tones of finished steels and 4.393 million tones of pig iron. Both primary and secondary producers contributed their share to this phenomenal development, while these increases have pushed up the demand for finished steel at a very stable rate. In 1992, the total consumption of finished steel was 14.84 million tones. In 2008, the total amount of domestic steel consumption was 43.925 million tones. With the increased demand in the national market, a huge part of the international market is also served by this industry. Today, India is in seventh position among all the crude steel producing countries. The following are the premier steel plants operating in India: Salem Steel Plant at Tamil Nadu, Bhilai Steel Plant at Chattisgarh, Durgapur Steel Plant at West Bengal, Alloy Steel Plants at West Bengal, Visvesvaraya Iron and Steel Plant in Karnataka, Rourkela Steel Plant at Orissa, Bokaro Steel Plant at Jharkhand

Structural Weaknesses of Indian Steel Industry
Although India has modernised its steelmaking considerably, however, nearly 6% of its crude steel is still produced using the outdated open-hearth process.
Labour productivity in India is still very low. According to an estimate crude steel output at the biggest Indian steelmaker is roughly 144 tonnes per worker per year, whereas in Western Europe the figure is around 600 tonnes.
India has to do a lot of catching in the production of stainless steel, which is primarily required by the plant and equipment, pharmaceutical and chemical industries.
Steel production in India is also hampered by power shortages.
India is deficient in raw materials required by the steel industry. Iron ore deposits are finite and there are problems in mining sufficient amounts of it. India's hard coal deposits are of low quality.
Insufficient freight capacity and transport infrastructure impediments too hamper the growth of Indian steel industry.

Strengths of Indian Steel Industry
Low labour wage rates
Abundance of quality manpower
Mature production base
Positive stimuli from construction industry
Booming automobile industry .

•Raw material used iron and steel industry: Iron ore, cooking coal, manganese, dolomite and lime stone.
•Factors affecting the localization of iron and steel industry are:
•Availability of raw materials in close proximity to the industry.
•Also depends on means of transport, communications and banking facilities.

•The location of iron and steel industry is controlled by the availability of raw materials because iron and steel industry uses large quantity of heavy and weight losing raw materials.
•Steel products iron and steel industry are quite heavy and bulky and transportation cost is very high. Therefore nearness to market is one of the major factor which influence the localization of iron and steel industry.

RAW MATERIALS:

The main raw materials used in iron and steel industry are iron ore, manganese, limestone, silica, chromate, feldspar, scrap iron, flux, and fuel. Coking coal obtained from Jharia, Raniganj, Bokaro, Giridih and Korba is used as a fuel. Manganese is used for hardening of steel and also for removing impurities. Steel products need to be falvanised to make them rust free. This is done by galvanising iron with chromium, nickel and tungsten.

There are four main sections in an integrated iron and steel plant.

i. Mixing of raw materials: Iron ore, coking coal and limestone are mixed together in the proportion 4:2:1. Manganese is also added.

ii. Blast furnace: The blast furnace is about 30 metres high steel structure with a diameter of 6 to 7 metres. It is lined with brick.

iii. Steel Melting Furnaces: The pig iron produced by the blast furnace has high levels of impurities made up of carbon, silicon, manganese, phosphorous and sulphur. All these are reduced considerably by melting the pig iron and oxidising the impurities. This process converts the pig iron into steel. By adding manganese, nickel, chromium special types of steel are made.

iv. Rolling Mills: The steel obtained is cast into huge ingots. These ingots are later rolled into different shapes and sizes, such as sheets, plates, beams, rods and nails. This is done in rolling mills.

•The government has taken various steps to promote iron and steel industry. They are -
•Government is promoting Privatisation and globalization.
•Government is providing cheap power

LARGE INTEGRATED IRON AND STEEL PLANTS:
•Integrated Steel Plant is a plant where all the process are carried out in one complex, from handling of raw material , steel making, rolling and shaping of the steel.
• Two advantages of Integrated Steel plants are:
• * All the process are carried out under one complex, hence it saves time and transportation cost.
• * These have short gestation period i.e. production can be started in a short period.

•Bhillai Iron and Steel Plant was set up under the public sector. It gets coal from Korba (Chhattisgarh ) Bokaro (Jharkhand) and Jharia. Bokaro Steel Plant is another plant under public sector.

MINI STEEL PLANTS:
•The steel plants that do not do all the processing at one place are called mini-steel plants. These plants are small in size and use less capital investments. They use steel scrap in electric furnace and help in recycling iron and reduce the consumption of coal.

Iron and Steel industry is concentrated around Chhota Nagapur plateau. Do you know why?

Iron and Steel industry is concentrated around Chhota Nagapur plateau region because:
•It is famous for iron ores. Bihar, Bengal, and Jharkhand provide raw material.
•Coal which is used as a fuel is another important input and is available in this region in plenty.
•Because of more population in this region, cheap and abundant labour is also available.

We have another Steel plant in India. That is the Vishakhapatnam Steel Plants. The Vishakhapatam Steel plants have few advantages over the other steel plants in the public sector . They are:
• # It has a unique location on the sea coast in Andhra Pradesh so it has easy import-export facility.
• # It can get iron from Guntur which is not far away from Vishakapatanam.
• # It is the most sophisticated modern integrated steel plant in the country.

The government has taken various steps to promote iron and steel industry. They are -
•Government is promoting Privatisation and globalization.
•Government is providing cheap power

MAJOR IRON AND STEEL PLANTS IN INDIA

At present thre are seven integrated iron and steel plants in India. This is an industry which requires huge investment, the most modern technical knowledge and a long period before the industry begins to yield sizeable dividends. Out of the 7 plants, only one, the Tata Iron and Steel Company (TISCO) is in the private sector. The other six are in the public sector.

The major iron and steel plants in India are:

a. Tata Iron and Steel Company

b. Bilai Steel Plant

c. Durgapur Steel Plant

d. Rourkela Steel Plant

e. Bokaro Steel Plant

f. Indian Iron and Steel Company.


LET US STUDY SOME QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON IRON AND STEEL INDUSTRY:

1. a. Name any two raw materials of iron and steel industry. Write briefly two factors which effect the localization of this industry.
Raw material used iron and steel industry: Iron ore, cooking coal, manganese, dolomite and lime stone.
Factors affecting the localization of iron and steel industry are:
* Availability of raw materials in close proximity to the industry.
* Also depends on means of transport, communications and banking facilities.
b. Why is the location of iron and steel industry controlled by the raw material?
The location of iron ad steel industry is controlled by the availability of raw materials because iron and steel industry uses large quantity of heavy and weight losing raw materials.
c. Nearness to market is one of the major factor which influence the localization of iron and steel industry. Why? Name four large scale industries dependent on this basic industry.
Steel products iron and steel industry are quite heavy and bulky and transportation cost is very high. Therefore nearness to market is one of the major factor which influence the localization of iron and steel industry.
* Automobile industry * Engineering goods industry * Ship building industry
* Locomotive and coaches industry are four large scale industries that are dependent on Iron and Steel industry.

d. Why is iron and steel industry called a basic and heavy industry?
Iron and steel industry is called the basic industry because:
It is the industry which lays the foundation of rapid development ot other industries such as heavy engineering, defence equipment, automobiles, aeroplanes, etc.
It is also helpful in providing employment.
It also helps in the developmet of agriculture.
It is a heavy industry because all raw material and finished products are heavy and bulky.

2. a. Mention any two steps which have been taken by the govt to promote iron and steel industry.
The government has taken various steps to promote iron and steel industry. They are -
* Government is promoting Privatisation and globalization.
* Government is providing cheap power

b. Mention an one problem faced by the Iron and Steel industry in India.
There is shortage of research facilties.

3. What two advantages does the Vishakhapatam Steel plants have over the other steel plants in the public sector?
The Vishakhapatam Steel plants have few advantages over the other steel plants in the public sector . They are:
# It has a unique location on the sea coast in Andhra Pradesh so it has easy import-export facility.
# It can get iron from Guntur which is not far away from Vishakapatanam.
# It is the most sophisticated modern integrated steel plant in the country.

4. Give reason why iron and steel industry is concentrated around Chhota Nagapur plateau region. Which is the oldest and privately owned plant?
Iron and Steel industry is concentrated around Chhota Nagapur plateau region because:
· It is famous for iron ores. These raw materials are heavy and bulky so it is located near the source of raw material. Bihar, Bengal, and Jharkhand provide raw material.
· Coal which is used as a fuel is another important input and is available in this region in plenty.
· Because of more population in this region, cheap and abundant labour is also available.
The Tata Iron and Steel company at Jameshedpur is the oldest and privately owned plant.

5. With reference to Visveswarya iron and steel Ltd., answer the following:
a. City where it is located - Bhadravati
b. From where it gets iron ore – It obtains iron ore from Bababudan hills.
c. From where it gets limestone? – It gets limestone from Mandi Gudda.
d. From where it gets manganese? – It gets manganese from Joda mines of Keonjhar district in Orissa.

6. What is an Integrated Steel Plant? State two advantages of Integrated Steel Plants. Name one integrated steel plant in the Public Sector. From where does this plant get its requirement of iron ore and coal?
Integrated Steel Plant is a plant where all the process are carried out in one complex, from handling of raw material , steel making, rolling and shaping of the steel.

Two advantages of Integrated Steel plants are:
* All the process are carried out under one complex, hence it saves time and transportation cost.
* These have short gestation period i.e. production can be started in a short period.

Bhillai Iron and Steel Plant was set up under the public sector. It gets coal from Korba (Chhattisgarh ) Bokaro (Jharkhand) and Jharia. Bokaro Steel Plant is another plant under public sector.

7. With reference to Bhilai Steel Plant., answer the following:
a. From where it gets power – It gets power from Korba thermal power station.
b. From where it gets iron ore – It obtains iron ore from Durg, Chanda and Bastar districts..
c. From where it gets limestone? – It gets limestone from Nandini Quarries.
d. From where it gets coal– It gets coal from Raniganj and Jharia coalfields.
e. From where it gets manganese – it gets manganese from Bhandara and Balaghat

8. . With reference to the Iron and Steel plant located at Jameshdpur, answer the following questions:
a. From where does the plant get its iron ore?
It gets iron ore from Chhota Nagpur Plateau region.

b. Which river provides water to the township?
Subarnarekha provides water to the township.

c. Name the states that provide its labour force?
Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal, Jharkhand

d. Which sea port serves the region?
Kolkatta sea port serves the region.

e. Explain three favourable factors for the location of steel plant at Jamshedpur.
All the essential raw material (iron-ore, limestone etc.) is available in the area.
There is a network of railways and roads in the area. So finished goods can easily be distributed within the country and also exported to other countries.
Labour, power and banking facilities are also available in the area.


9. a. ‘Mini Steel plants are successful in India.’ Give two reasons. Or state 2 advantages of Mini
Steel Plants.
- Minis steel plants do not need hugh capital investment as compared to large integrated plants.
- As mini steel plants have electric furnaces, they reduce the consumption of coal and help to conserve it.
- These have lower cost of production.
- These help in the decentralization of the industry.

b. State two geographical factors which were taken into consideration for the setting up the Durgapur Iron and Steel Plant.
The plant is in West Bengal . It is quite close to Kotkotta. Kolkotta is a port city and is being used for import and export of raw material and finished goods.
Density of population in West Bengal is very high, so cheap labour is available.

c. Mention any one problem faced by the Iron and Steel Industry in India.
There is shortage of research facilities in India.

10. Name the major industry associated with Rourkela.
Steel (Iron and Steel industry)

11. a. Where is steel industry mainly confined to?
Chhota Nagpur Plateau bordering West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa and Jharkhand.
b. When was the first modern steel industry set up in India?
Kulti in West Bengal in 1870.
c. Name two steel plants which were established with Soviet Union collaboration.
Bhilai and Bokaro
d. Name a shore based steel plant – Vishakhapatanam
e. Name the iron and steel plant which is located far away from the main coal producing
areas. – Visvesvarya iron and steel plant.
f. Name the oldest and the largest iron and steel centre of India.
Jamshedpur is the oldest and the largest iron and steel centre of India.
g. Name any 4 iron and steel plants which are in public sector? With whose collaboration
was each one of them set up?
* Durgapur steel plant was built with British, West Germany and Soviet Union
collaboraton.
* Rourkela Steel plant was built with the collaboration of Krupp and Demag firms of
Germany.
* Bokaro steel plant was built with Soviet Union collaboration.
* The Bhilai steel plant was built with Soviet Union collaboration.
h. Name 4 large scale industries dependent on iron and steel industry.
* Ship building
* Railway locomotives
* The aircraft industry
* Heavy machines and tools
i. Which is the largest mineral based industry?
Iron and Steel industry is the largest mineral based industry of India.
k. Give a geographical reason for the location of Iron and Steel Industry at Bokaro.
Coal is a basic input in iron and steel industry which can be brought from Bokaroand Jharia coal fields which are not far away from this plant.
l. From where does the iron and steel plant of Bhadravati get its iron-ore?
Visvesvarya Iron and Steel Plant which is located at Bhadravati gets its iron ore from Bababudan hills.

12. Explain the term ‘mini-steel plant’. Give any two reasons favouring the location of iron and steel plants in north eastern Deccan Plateau.
The steel plants that do not do all the processing at one place are called mini-steel plants. These plants are small in size and use less capital investments. They use steel scrap in electric furnace and help in recycling iron and reduce the consumption of coal.
The reasons favouring the location of iron and steel plants in north eastern Deccan Plateau are:
availability of iron ore, manganese, coal and limestone.
iron and steel industry is a labour intensive industry. North Eastern Deccan Plateau is densely populated and cheap labour is available.

13. Give one important centre of production for each of the following:
Diesel locomotive – Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh)
Aircraft – Bangalore (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited)
Ship building – Kolkotta (West Bengal)

14. Name the state where Bokaro is located.
Bokaro is located in Jharkhand.

15. Why is iron and steel industry located around the Chhotanagpur plateau?
Iron and steel industries are located at Jamshedpur (Jharkhand) or around the Chhotanagpur plateau (bordering W. Bengal, Bihar, Orissa and M.P) because the following reasons:
1. High grade hematite is obtained from Noamandi mines of Singhbhum (Jharkhand) and Mayurbhanj (Orissa).
2. Power from DVC and coal mines is in close proximity at Jharia and Raniganj.
3. Manganese is obtained from Keonjhar district in Orissa.
4. Limestone and dolomite are obtained from Sundergarh (Orissa).
5. Well developed network of transport both railways and roadways.
6. Kolkata provides not only port facilities, but both domestic and international market.
7. Plenty of water for cooling purposes is available from the river Damodar and its tributaries.
8. Cheap and skilled labour is drawn from Bihar, Orissa and West Bengal.


16. India is an important iron and steel producing country in the world yet, not able to perform to full potential. Why?
The reasons are:
1. High costs and limited availability of cooking coal.
2. Lower productivity of labour.
3. Irregular supply of energy.
4.Poor Infrastructure

17.What is the difference between mini steel plant and integrated steel plant?
Mini steel plants are smaller, have electric furnaces, use steel scrap and sponge iron. They have re-rollers that use steel ingots as well. They produce mild and alloy steel of given specifications. An Integrated steel plant is large andhandles everything in one complex-form putting together raw material to steel making, rolling and shaping.