The Tamil Nadu AITUC Construction Workers’ Association has written to chief minister M K Stalin to find a way to regulate the prices of construction materials such as cement, M-Sand and sand
They said the rising prices had made it difficult for the builders and small-time contractors to complete the projects, leaving many construction workers out of jobs. They also urged the state government to bring the cement prices on par with the prices in other states.
The association said the prices of all raw construction materials had increased post the state assembly election. The price of a sack of cement has increased by 54% to Rs 570 from Rs 370, while the price of a unit of M-sand has gone up to Rs 6,000 from Rs 5,000 and that of sand to Rs 8,000 from Rs 6,000. They said the cost of 3,000 crushed stones has shot up to Rs 27,000 from Rs 23,000, while one tonne steel road has become costlier by Rs 14,000 to Rs 72,000 from Rs 58,000.
“This has impacted the common man’s affordability to build a house, a builder’s ability to complete existing construction projects, the government’s ability to carry out all its construction works and the small-time contractors’ ability to take up projects and execute them successfully. As a result, construction workers are out of jobs,” the letter read.
The association also requested the state government to approach the cement manufacturers association to fix a uniform price in every state.