India's Aug infrastructure output grows 2.6 pct - govt

Workers fasten iron rods together and erect a scaffolding to build a pillar of a metro bridge under construction, in Greater Noida on the outskirts of New Delhi, September 30, 2015. REUTERS/Anindito Mukherjee

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's annual infrastructure output growth picked up in August to 2.6 percent from a year ago, mainly driven by higher cement and electricity generation, government data showed on Wednesday. The output had grown 1.1 percent year-on-year in July. Steel production, however, shrank an annual 5.9 percent last month, compared with a 5.6 percent growth in July. The infrastructure sector accounts for nearly 38 percent of India's industrial output. (Reporting by Manoj Kumar; Editing by Malini Menon)