Visakhapatnam, May 20: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said steel production in the country was below expectations and urged the industry to step up output to meet the demands of a growing infrastructure sector.

Launching the Rs 8,600-crore expansion programme of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant here, Singh said he had promised all support to Lakshmi Mittal if he decided to invest and produce steel in India.

Singh said the country has a tough task of achieving 100 million tonnes of steel production by 2008 to cater to the domestic demand. The Visakhapatnam Steel plant had a major role to play in fulfilling the target, he said.

Describing the expansion programme as a fulfilment of a dream of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, who had laid the foundation of the VSP plant in 1971, Singh said the unit has the potential to acquire captive mines for fuel and iron ore to meet its targets.

“The VSP is a sacred temple of development for the people of Visakhapatnam,” he said.

Steel minister Ramvilas Paswan said the VSP had been recognised as a miniratna because it achieved 120 per cent of its capacity utilisation and also wiped out its accumulated loss during the current year.

He said the ministry had decided to establish an R&D centre for steel in Hyderabad with a corpus of Rs 50 crore for innovations in designs and technological advances.

Singh said efforts were also being made to revive public sector units like Hindusthan Shipyard, Bharat Heavy Plates and Vessels located at Visakhapatnam.

“It was Rajiv dedicated and devoted measures that have placed India on the path of development now" he said.

Later the prime minister interacted with women self help group leaders at the municipal stadium and lauded their role in empowerment of women in the state.