Cement leaders meet in Delhi for industry summit

Industry leaders met in New Delhi yesterday for 'Concreatech 2018 – Sustain to Gain', a summit organised by the Cement Manufacturers' Association (CMA), to discuss the cement sector's role in national development and commitment to low carbon industrial development. Delegates were told that the Indian cement industry is on track for high growth as it commits to sustainable growth and ambitious CO2 reduction target. In his opening address, Dr Shailendra Chouksey, President, CMA, outlined the progress made by the cement industry, which has seen it rise to be the second largest cement producing nation in the world, with a cement capacity of over 500Mta, accounting for eight per cent of global installed capacity. Domestic demand is accelerating and is expected to grow by 12-14 per cent in 2018. Sustainable growth is a cornerstone for the industry, which is committed to a 40 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions by 2050. In his keynote address to delegates, Mr Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of State of Housing and Urban Affairs, stressed India's commitment to sustainability ideals, having played a leading role in shaping the Sustainable Development Goals, and the importance of sustainable growth for India where economic expansion and responsibility toward the climate can no longer seen as mutually exclusive. "We have to get over this zero-sum mindset which pits development against our responsibility towards the climate," he said. On India's current development agenda, Mr Puri highlighted the current administration's achievements, including delivering on major sanitation programmes, such as the construction of 6.7m toilets by October 2019, 2400 projects worth INR740m under the Atal Mission for Rejuvination and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) programme, and 11m homes by 2020 under the PMAY affordable housing initiative.