The Cement Manufacturers Association has estimated a 8-9 per cent rise in cement consumption for the 2013-14 fiscal. The body estimates consumption to reach a figure of about 280-285 million tonnes (mt), from around 260 million tones in 2012-13 fiscal,
Puranmalka raised concerns over the demand lag in the industry, which has been seeing excess capacity of about 100 mt.´The slowdown in the economy, including dried up investments in infrastructure, has adversely impacted the cement industry and its capacity utilisation. Aggressive efforts need to be undertaken to catalyse the industry,´Puranmalka said.