Through innovation and research, the use of steel and cement should be reduced in road construction without compromising on quality, Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said on Friday.

“Reducing the cost of construction is the need of the hour,” Gadkari said at a conference on road development in India. “Because of the cartel in cement industry, now they have already increased their rates. The steel rates are also very high. This is the time for the country to find out the alternative for steel and cement.”

The Centre supports the use of carbon steel, which has a higher concentration of carbon than other steel types, in road construction. “I am constantly working on the concept of carbon steel,” Gadkari said.

Read also: Gadkari calls for newer technologies in bridge-building space without compromising on quality

“We are making new innovations regarding bridge construction. The distance between two piers is presently 30 metres. Now we have decided to permit up to 120 metres,” he added. “The beam between the two piers can be constructed using steel fiber.”

Though steel prices have stabilised in the last few days after efforts by the Chinese government to cool down the global supercycle, prices have surged upwards since October.

Gadkari had in January accused both the domestic steel and cement industries of cartelisation. “There is a cartel in the cement and steel industry. Every steel company has its own iron ore mines and there has been no increase in labour and power costs but they are increasing rates,” he had said.

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