In India, the steel production industry requires the import of

India is a major producer of iron ore, which is the primary raw material for steel production. However, despite having significant coal reserves, India faces a shortage of high-quality coking coal, which is essential for the metallurgical process (blast furnace) involved in steel manufacturing. Coking coal, when heated in the absence of air, produces coke, which acts as a fuel and a reducing agent in the blast furnace to convert iron ore into pig iron. India's domestic coking coal reserves are limited and often of inferior quality, necessitating substantial imports to meet the demands of its steel industry. Saltpetre (potassium nitrate) is used in fertilizers and explosives, and rock phosphate is used in fertilizers; neither is a primary import for the steel industry in the same critical capacity as coking coal.