Dhirendra Tripathi & Shreya Nandi Moneycontrol News
Promoters of top Indian mining and steel companies have spoken against exporting minerals and have called for exploration purely for domestic consumption.
Speaking at Network18's Global Natural Resources Conclave, Sajjan Jindal, Chairman, JSW Group said,"We are very slow in exploiting our natural resources. We must exploit our natural resources as soon as possible. We should not export our natural resources."
He noted that the India imports aluminium and steel despite having the potential to produce both in order to meet local demand.
Jindal further added that the mining industry used to be plagued with corruption till the current government amended the mining laws to introduce a transparent auction process to allocate mines, replacing the age-old first-come-first-serve method of allotment.
Mining giant Anil Agarwal, Chairman of Vedanta also had similar views.
"We should use as much swadeshi as possible for normal consumption," Agarwal said, adding that the company's entire production is consumed within India.
Agarwal emphasised on the need for exploration of potential resources in a mineral rich country like India.
"India has done 10 percent of exploration compared with 80 percent in developed nations in the world. Vedanta is using technological advances like using drones for geological surveys," he said.
Agarwal further added that the government is simplifying the process of obtaining forest clearance which is a step in line with its focus on improving the ease of doing business in the country.
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