India's steel industry is scripting a new chapter as it plans to grow into a global manufacturing powerhouse while lowering the carbon cost of every tonne. The draft National Steel Policy–Vision 2047 sets an ambitious direction, proposing about 604 million tonnes per year (MTPA) of crude-steel capacity and 505 million tonnes of finished-steel demand by 2047. It also envisages per-capita consumption of 302 kilograms and exports of 45 million tonnes, including steel embodied in manufactured goods.

India’s crude-steel capacity was around 222.7 million tonnes as of July 2026, so the 2047 target is nearly three times today’s level. Crude-steel production reached 168.4 million tonnes in 2025–26, up from 89.0 million tonnes in 2014–15. Finished-steel production was 160.9 million tonnes and consumption was

163.7 million tonnes. Output nearly doubled over the decade as infrastructure, urbanisation and manufacturing expanded.

India ranked second in crude-steel production in 2025, behind China, which produced about 961 million tonnes. India became the world’s second-largest producer in 2018, overtaking Japan, and it is also the second-largest consumer.

After Japan come the United States, Russia and South Korea. China alone makes over half of the world’s steel. The gap to China remains large, but India is far ahead of the rest of the field.

Several factors drove this. The 2017 National Steel Policy set long-term targets. Safeguard and anti-dumping duties protected domestic mills, and........

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