Domestic production of iron ore, a key raw material for steel making, rose by 18 per cent to 136 lakh tonne in July compared to the same month last year, official data showed.
The country had produced 115 lakh tonnes of iron ore in July 2016, according to the data released by the Mines Ministry.
On month-on-month basis, iron ore output was down 16.56 per cent compared to 163 lakh tonne in June.
The total value of mineral production (excluding atomic & minor minerals) in the country during July 2017 was Rs 18,037 crore and iron ore contributed Rs 2,069 crore to it.
Industry body Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI) said state governments exerting pressure on mining companies to raise output led to growth in iron ore production in July.
"The rise was mainly in Odisha and Jharkhand. This was because of the state governments putting pressure on mining companies to increase production although the demand for iron ore at present is not robust," FIMI's R K Sharma told PTI.
Earlier, Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh had said India will achieve more than 50 per cent of its 300 million tonne steel production target by 2018-19 and assured stakeholders that there will not be any shortage of raw materials such as iron ore for steel-making.
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