New Delhi: The total production of heavy engineering equipment and key segments of the capital goods sector has risen sharply from ₹2,66,672 crore in 2020–21 to ₹5,69,900 crore in 2024–25, the government informed Parliament on Tuesday.
According to Minister of State for Heavy Industries Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma, heavy electrical equipment registered production worth ₹3,64,706 crore in 2024–25, more than doubling from ₹1,67,706 crore in 2020–21.
Earthmoving and mining machinery also posted significant growth, with output reaching ₹80,750 crore in 2024–25 compared to ₹29,021 crore in 2020–21. Similarly, the production of printing machinery increased to ₹29,716 crore during the same period, up from ₹10,058 crore four years earlier.
The Minister clarified that the Ministry of Heavy Industries currently has no proposal under consideration for the disinvestment of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL).
However, he recalled that the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) had, on October 27, 2016, given in-principle approval for certain disinvestment-related actions concerning CPSEs under the Ministry. These included disinvestment of Bridge & Roof Co. India Ltd. (B&R), applicable units of Cement Corporation of India Ltd. (CCI), and a potential merger-based disinvestment of Engineering Projects (India) Ltd. (EPIL). Expressions of Interest were invited for B&R and EPIL, but no bids were received. Units of CCI were also not taken up for strategic sale as they were deemed unsuitable.
Meanwhile, India’s industrial production growth dropped to 0.4% in October, a slowdown attributed to fewer working days due to major festivals such as Dussehra, Diwali, and Chhath, according to the Ministry of Statistics.
Overall industrial growth, measured by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), had risen to 4% in August and September, after reaching a four-month high of 3.5% in July and recovering from just 1.5% in June.
The manufacturing sector posted a 1.8% growth rate in October compared to the same month last year, with 9 out of 23 industry groups recording positive growth.
With inputs from IANS