Vizag steel plant will not be shut down, do not panic, assures Union Steel Minister Kumaraswamy
The Hindu
Vizag steel plant will not be shut down, do not panic, assures Union Steel Minister Kumaraswamy. Its production will reach 100%, and we believe that RINL is one of the PSUs that helps in improving the country’s GDP, he says, and promises to explore the possibility RINL-SAIL merger.
Do not panic, we will not shut down the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP), assures Union Steel & Heavy Industries Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy.
“The family of Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL), the corporate arm of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP), should not panic about its closure,” Mr. Kumaraswamy said during his visit to the plant here for the first time on July 11 (Thursday). He was accompanied by Union Minister of State for Steel Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma.
Mr. Kumaraswamy, who represents Mandya in the Lok Sabha, is president of Karnataka State Janata Dal (Secular), which is a part of the NDA coalition government at the Centre.
Addressing the trade union representatives on the plant premises, Mr. Kumaraswamy extended all support to the steel plant, and said, “With the blessings and support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, RINL will not be shut down and, instead, its production will reach 100%. We strongly believe that RINL is one of the PSUs that helps in improving the country’s GDP.”
Earlier, Mr. Kumaraswamy visited the key production units of the plant. He first visited the model room in the ED (Works) building, wherein he was explained about the process and salient features of the plant by CMD Atul Bhatt. Later, he visited the award gallery, where he congratulated the team for bagging national and international awards.
Later, Mr. Kumaraswamy visited the Coke Ovens Section, Blast Furnace-3, Steel Melting Shop-2, and Wire Rod Mill-2 units of the plant.
Later, at a review meeting, Mr. Kumaraswamy was briefed about the past and present performance of the plant, its assets, decisions taken so far after announcing the privatisation proposal, among others.
Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot has sought a report from the State government on a complaint that the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) had taken up works amounting to ₹387 crore in violation of rules in Varuna and Srirangapatna Assembly constituencies, allegedly on Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s oral instructions.
“We are organising a health research convention, which comprises a couple of workshops, community-based learning, and also cardiac care. We also included a one-day seminar on medical education, how medical education has evolved in India and the U.K., and what we can learn from each other” said Dr. Piruthivi Sukumar Dean of the International Faculty of Medicine & Health, University of Leeds during his interaction with The Hindu.