New Delhi RERA And Steel Demand Reshape Construction

New Delhi: India’s steel consumption has nearly doubled over the past decade, reaching around 152 million tonnes in 2024–25, highlighting the scale of construction, infrastructure and industrial expansion underway. The acceleration also raises a wider urban question: how can India accommodate growing demand for buildings and infrastructure while limiting the environmental cost of steel-intensive development?

The latest official data places finished steel consumption at 152.13 million tonnes in 2024–25, compared with 94.89 million tonnes in 2020–21. Housing and construction account for about 43% of domestic steel use, while infrastructure contributes another 25%, underlining the close link between steel demand and the physical expansion of Indian cities. A senior official from the Ministry of Steel said at a session in New Delhi that crude-steel capacity could rise to about 300 million tonnes by 2030–31 and potentially 400 million tonnes by 2035–36. The 300-million-tonne capacity benchmark is also consistent with the government’s National Steel Policy, which set that target for 2030–31. For urban markets, the numbers matter beyond steel mills. Higher steel use is closely tied to housing construction, transport networks, airports, commercial buildings and other infrastructure.

As cities absorb more people and investment, stronger material demand could support construction activity and related employment, but it could also increase pressure on energy, freight networks, land and raw-material supply. The environmental challenge is significant. Steelmaking remains energy-intensive, and rapid capacity expansion can increase emissions unless production becomes progressively more efficient and less carbon-intensive. The Ministry of Steel itself has identified reducing the sector’s carbon footprint as a policy objective. Artificial intelligence is increasingly being positioned as one tool for improving this transition. The ministry says AI and digital systems are being used across areas such as mineral exploration, fleet management, stockpile monitoring, process optimisation and blast-furnace operations. Such applications could help reduce waste and improve resource efficiency, although technology alone cannot remove the underlying emissions associated with primary steel production.

The next phase of India’s construction cycle will therefore require more than additional capacity. Developers, infrastructure agencies and regulators will face growing pressure to use materials efficiently, strengthen recycling and embed lower-carbon practices into new urban projects. For citizens, the real measure of this industrial expansion will ultimately be whether it translates into durable housing, reliable infrastructure and better-connected cities without creating an equally large environmental burden.

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New Delhi RERA And Steel Demand Reshape Construction