Growth in eight infrastructure industries slowed to 2.3 percent in May mainly due to contraction in crude oil, natural gas, coal and fertiliser output.
The eight core industries had expanded at a rate of 7.2 percent in the same period last year.
The combined index of these industries – coal, crude oil, natural gas, petroleum refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement and electricity – was at 159.2 in May, 2013 with a growth rate of 2.3 percent, according to official data.
“The decline in the growth rate in May was mainly on account of negative growth witnessed in the production of coal, crude oil, natural gas and fertiliser,” the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a release.
The contraction in production of coal, crude oil, natural gas and fertiliser in the month under review this year was at 3.3 percent, 2.4 percent, 18.7 percent and 2 percent, respectively.
The eight core sector industries have a weight of about 38 percent in the overall industrial production.
Petroleum refinery production showed an expansion of 5 percent. However, the growth was subdued as compared to 23.4 percent registered in May 2012.
Steel production grew by 4.1 percent as against 3.8 percent, while cement output was up by only 3 percent against 15.4 percent in the review period.
Growth in electricity generation stood at 6.2 percent, as against 5.9 percent expansion registered in the May 2012.
The growth in eight infrastructure industries was 3.2 percent in 2012-13 as against 5 percent in the previous financial year.
PTI