NEW DELHI: Government scored a tactical victory over cartelization by cement manufacturers on Tuesday as it put up a list of 36 companies committing to supply 95 lakh tonnes of the construction material during this year at price up to Rs 180 per bag. These companies will supply cement from 103 factories spread over the country and the material can be bought for building roads, affordable housing, irrigation projects, drain and other civil works by Centre, state and local governments.

Announcing this road transport minister Nitin Gadkari said that the manufacturers won’t increase their price for the next one year and a few of them are likely to fix this price for the next three years. “After taking consent of the manufacturers we have put the list on a dedicated website, which any company or government agency can access to book their orders. Since the factories are spread all over the country, they can make the best choice. As per the contract, manufacturers can only reduce the price and increase their commitment to supply more cement,” the minister said.

The ministry has decided to build concrete cement roads in place of traditional bitumen roads as cement roads are cost-effective and require less maintenance. “We will not only reduce our foreign exchange outgo by reducing our dependence on bitumen but it will also help our domestic cement industry grow. Once the reduced price is out, it will have effect on other manufacturers and prices across companies may fall,” Gadkari said.

Government estimates saving of crores of rupees because of this price quoted by cement manufacturers. The road transport ministry has now launched a dedicated portal that will work as an interface among the raw material and technology suppliers, and developers, contractors and government agencies.