According to the rating agency ICRA, cement demand is expected to increase by up to 20 per cent in the next fiscal year with volumes touching FY2019-FY2020 levels. The growth would be supported by rural demand, including affordable housing, and recovery in the infrastructure segment. ICRA expects cement demand to increase by 18-20 per cent in FY2022 over FY2021 with the volumes reaching back to around FY2019-FY2020 levels. The volume growth is also likely to support operating margins in FY2022 at around 20 to 21 per cent, notwithstanding some cost-side pressures. Capacity additions are expected to get back to around 20-22 mn tonne per annum in FY2022 from around 15-17 MTPA in FY2021.