Intelligent automation, digital twins, advanced analytics and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven process control systems will be critical to ensuring that the Indian steel industry remains globally competitive and environmentally responsible, secretary of India’s steel ministry, Sandeep Poundrik, said on Friday, February 20, in an address at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 being held in New Delhi.
The steel ministry secretary said that the country’s crude steel capacity target will touch 300 million mt per year by 2030 and rise further to 400 million mt by 2036, up from 200 million mt at present
This expansion will be supported by parallel growth in mining output, logistics networks, beneficiation capacity, and downstream value addition. Such rapid scaling requires intelligent capacity utilization real-time monitoring, efficient energy management, decarbonisation strategies and optimised capital deployment, Mr. Poundrik stated.
AI is therefore positioned as a strategic enabler rather than a peripheral tool, he said.
