Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) Chairman Atul Bhatt decided to go on leave until the end of his tenure amidst the growing protests in Visakhapatnam for the revival of the Steel Plant. In his absence, Director (Projects) Arun Kumar Bagchi has been appointed as the interim CMD till 30 November 2024.
According to the sources, his tenure will end on November 30. Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, managed by RINL is facing severe financial difficulties, with a Rs 18,000 crore debt. Due to a lack of working capital, almost 13,000 plant workers were paid their salaries in two instalments since Atul Bhatt took over.
Activists of the left parties, and trade unions together with Congress leaders staged a protest resulting in a Rasta Roko on September 10. They demanded the government to merge the Steel Plant into Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and continuation of the plant in the public sector.
Previously, the central government has made the decision to privatize the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant on many occasions. However, the Union Minister of Steel, in July 2024, visited the Steel Plant and assured the unions that there would be no privatisation. He asked them for 45 days to take action. However, after two months, there has been no revival plans were made and at present RINL is not able to optimize production, as only one blast furnace is being operated among the three.
The Steel plant has been under the ownership of the Union Ministry of Steel for more than five decades. It holds a capacity to produce 7.3 million tonnes of steel every year. It is India’s first shore-based integrated steel plant which was established in the year 1982. Under the banner of Visakha Ukku Andhrula Hakku, several protest movements have been going on against the privatization of the entity.
While the protests in Visakhapatnam for the revival of the Steel Plant are intensifying, the sudden decision of the Chairman to go on leave before the two months of his tenure is raising several speculations.
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