New Delhi: The pace of 8 major basic industries (core sector) of the country remained sluggish for the ninth consecutive month. Core sector production dropped 2.6 percent in November 2020. The main reason for this was the decrease in production of natural gas, refinery products, steel and cement. According to the data released on Thursday by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the core sector registered a growth of 0.7 percent in November 2019.
According to the data, crude, natural gas, refinery products, steel and cement production declined in November. At the same time, growth was recorded in the coal, fertilizer and electricity sectors. Crude production fell 4.9 per cent, natural gas 9.3 per cent, refinery products 4.8 per cent, steel 4.4 per cent and cement production 7.1 per cent in November 2020. On the other hand, coal production increased by 2.9 percent and electricity generation increased by 2.2 percent. Fertilizer sector production grew 1.6 percent.
According to the data, the production of core sector dropped by 11.4 percent during April-November. The core sector registered 0.3 percent growth in the same period last year. The core sector contributes 40.27 per cent to the index of industrial production.
