By Anurjay Dhal
BHUBANESWAR: The studied silence of Union Commerce, Industry, Railways and Food Supplies Minister, Piyush Goyal and Union PNG-Steel Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, on the proposed disinvestment of defunct Nilachal Ispat Nigam Limited, located at Kalinga Nagar industrial belt of Odisha’s chrome rich Jajpur district, have left 5000 employees and executives in dark . The silence has also silenced the Aatma Nirbhara Bharat slogans of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in industrial rich areas of Odisha.
With Odisha High Court seeking a reply from MMTC under Ministry of Commerce and Industry, while hearing a petition filled by the Neelachal Executive Association, the disinvestment move may face further legal hurdles, sources said. Employees and Executives of NINL are hoping that Ministry of Steel led by Pradhan shall take over it and run it. BJP sources close to Union PNG-Steel Minister Pradhan, however maintained that the Union Government is looking for investors to run the now closed plant but investors not showing interest for it and for which, both Pradhan and Goyal facing tough time. Only Tata Group, which has an integrated steel plant at the same location, had the only from private sector, shown its interest for acquiring stake.
Neelachal Executive Association had sought intervention of HC against the disinvestment plan which the Union Cabinet had approved on January 8. MMTC is likely to reply to HC in next few days sources added. MMTC holds majority stake of 49.78 % in NINL while Odisha Mining Corporation and Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation of Odisha Ltd have 20.47 % and 12 %stakes respectively. Three other CPSUs NMDC, MECON and BHEL hold minor share in NINL.
Neelachal Executive Association has been alleging that the decision was illegal and arbitrary. As promoters were not interested to infuse money to run the plant following approval for disinvestment, there was severe liquidity crunch.The association, seeking direction of HC for payment of salary and merger of NINL with Steel Authority of India under Steel Ministry headed by Pradhan,
Meanwhile, the employees and executives got a month (for March , 2020) after BJD Rajya Sabha MP Dr Amar Patnaik pushed the issue strongly with Union Minister Piyush Goyal.NINL Executive Association has been demanding to resume the plant operation immediately by merging with Steel PSUs like SAIL,RINL and NMDC and to start its captive mines under Koira mining circles of Sundargarh.
Employees of defunct NINL are waiting to get their 8 months pending salary. Operations at 1.1 million tonne integrated NINL plant , are suspended at the moment. Future of about 5,000 employees, mainly of local population, has plunged into uncertainty. While produced materials worth about Rs 200 crore are lying in the premises of NINL, its employees are not getting salary since March on the grounds of funds crunch.In January 2020, the Centre gave an in-principle approval for strategic sale of NINL by allowing the six PSU shareholders to sell their stake in the steel company.
“Already 2 deadlines of disinvestment have crossed , nobody knows when disinvestment will be completed, we request intervention of all stake holders to resume the plant operation immediately by merging with Steel PSUs like SAIL,RINL and NMDC and to start its captive mines,” NINL Executive Association said. Association President Avijit Koley and General Secretary Ajit Kumar Pradhan have been regularly drawing attention of Union Ministers Pradhan and Goyal as well as State Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Chief Secretary Asit Tripahy regarding this but nothing has happened yet.
Sources said, OMC had advanced Rs 174 crore to meet the debt servicing, Chief Secretary Tripathy had earlier took up the issue with the Union Government to sort out the issues.One iron ore mine was allotted in favour of NINL with about 110 million ton reserve in Koida in the year 1999 which is yet to be made operational. On the other hand supplying raw materials from open market to NINL, the MMTC has gained commission to the tune of about Rs 944 crore. It is pertinent to mention here that the MMTC has equity share of Rs 368 crore in the NINL.
It is alleged that the MMTC is not taking interest in selling out produced materials lying in the premises of the NINL. These materials include pig iron, coke breeze and steel scraps, etc.In the meantime, distressed over non-payment of wages for months, one worker of the NINL namely Kishore Jena has committed suicide. NEA had alleged that closing down of the plant has resulted in huge revenue loss of more than Rs 2,400 crore per annum. Future of about 5,000 employees mainly of local population including nearly 1,000 displaced and land losers mostly tribal and weaker section of society is in darkness.
