The Cement Manufacturers’ Association of India has demanded immediate withdrawal of the hike in railway freight rates, saying the hike would lead to unsustainable increase in production cost.   

In a statement, the CMA Secretary General, E. N. Murthy, said that the present increase in railway freight would impose a further unfair burden on the cement industry and needs to be immediately withdrawn.   

He also said that cement was one of the highly taxed commodities with over 80 per cent of ex-factory value and the industry faced periodic increases in costs of various inputs.