INDIA :
STRIVING FOR SUSTAINABILITY Dr. S. B. Hegde describes the major strides the Indian cement industry has recently taken towards achieving sustainability and a circular economy.
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ndia’s vision is to become a superpower and to have a robust economy which is primarily dependent on the growth of its industrial sector, with cement being the most produced commodity. In India, the major cement consuming sectors include housing and real estate (65%), infrastructure (25%), and commercial and industrial development (10%). From 2018 – 2019, India had an annual cement consumption of 337 million t and this is expected to increase up to 550 million t by 2025. This increase is attributed to various developmental
schemes launched by the Government of India, including the Smart City Mission, Housing for All, Bharatmala Pariyojana, Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, Urban Transport Metro Rail Projects, etc. Aided by suitable government foreign policies, several foreign players such as Holcim, HeidelbergCement, and Vicat have invested in the country in the recent past. The per capita consumption of cement in India is 240 kg, which is well below the global consumption of 530 kg (DIPP, 2020). This signifies that there is a huge economic opportunity to cater to the unmet demand in future.
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