JAJPUR: Former Finance Minister and senior BJD leader Prafulla Chandra Ghadei has urged the Centre to assess the action taken report of the review meeting on revival of Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd (NINL) held on August 13.
In a letter to Petroleum, Natural Gas and Steel Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Ghadei sought urgent steps to revive the industry keeping in view the larger interest of the country and its employees and workers.
Ghadei, who is also the chief advisor of Kalinga Nagar Mazdoor Union said, “We are grateful to the Union ministers for their discussion with Odisha Chief Secretary and Secretary of Investment and Public Assessment department on the revival of NINL.”
He said as NINL was faced with a financial crisis, the Union cabinet approved its disinvestment in January this year.
The Kalinga Nagar Mazdoor Union and other unions of NINL had suggested merger of the industry with SAIL, RINL or NMDC or increase of equity by the shareholders for its revival. Ghadei said the Union Government has envisaged to augment the country’s steel production of 100 million tonne and NINL, an integrated iron and steel plant having 1.1 million tonne capacity per annum can contribute significantly in this direction.
He said NINL has adequate infrastructure and captive mines and its production capacity can be enhanced to 10 million tonne per annum.
NINL, a company promoted by MMTC Ltd, Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation of Orissa limited (IPICOL) and other Government agencies has set up an 1.1 million tonne plant at Kalinga Nagar in the district. Production at the public sector steel mill was stopped as a result of which the employees and workers are not getting salaries for the past six months.