BHUBANESWAR: Two days after foundation stone of ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India (AM/NS India) was laid for a mega steel plant in Andhra Pradesh, opposition BJD on Wednesday described it as a very sad and shameful development for the state.
Expressing concern over the fate of the proposed project of AM/NS in Kendrapada district, BJD MP Sasmit Patra claimed that the project, which was originally planned for Odisha, is now being shifted to AP. He claimed that Odisha’s mineral resources would be sent for the project.
When Naveen Patnaik was the chief minister, he travelled to Japan and signed an MoU with Nippon Steel. Consequently, Nippon Steel set out to build its own steel plant in Odisha, he said. However, the second most critical issue is that Odisha’s minerals will be transported to Andhra Pradesh via a slurry pipeline, he claimed.
The BJD MP said if steel plant and industry move out of Odisha, and states’s minerals and coal are supplied through such pipelines, nothing will be left for the state. “If Lakshmi Mittal wants to produce steel, he should do so in Odisha rather than taking our minerals to Andhra Pradesh,” Patra said.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday laid foundation for Rs 1.36 lakh crore AM/NS India steel plant in Nakkapalli mandal of Anakapalli district.