The Builders Association of India (BAI) has announced that it will be investing Rs 3,000 crore to set up a cement manufacturing plant at Anantpur in Andhra Pradesh. For this purpose, the association has purchased 2,500 hectare of land. "As government and judiciary have failed to rein in the cement manufacturers from increasing the price arbitrarily, members of the BAI have decided to set up the plant," said Cherian Varkey, National President, BAI. The plant would have a production capacity of 10 million tonne per annum and is expected to be ready in two years. The money will be raised from the association’s 12,000 members and 40,000 affiliated members all over the country," said Bhaghwan Deokar, former BAI President. The minimum contribution from each member will be Rs 10 lakh, the maximum contribution would be of Rs 5 crore.
The association has plans for setting up similar plants in Karnataka, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. The association is of the view that of late, the manufacturers of major construction materials like cement and steel have started increasing the price by indulging in unfair trade practices. It further mentioned that under the free economy, consolidation of cement and steel industry gathered momentum resulting in unfair monopolistic trade practices which are detrimental to the construction industry.