BJP's GVL asks NMDC to give preferential treatment to RINL

VISAKHAPATNAM: BJP Rajya Sabha member G.V.L. Narasimha Rao said as a central public sector enterprise, RINL in Visakhapatnam deserves preferential treatment by NMDC, another CPSE.

“There must be no negative discrimination in comparison to private steel producers,” he underlined in a letter to union steel minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Friday.

Narasimha Rao recalled that since RINL’s inception, NMDC had till a few months ago been supplying to the plant in Visakhapatnam iron ore fines, lump and sized ore from Bailadilla mines in Chhattisgarh. These are the nearest and best quality iron ore mines at a distance of 560 km from Vizag.

However, NMDC has now asked RINL to receive most of its iron ore requirements from the corporation’s mines in Karnataka, which is more than 900 km away from Visakhapatnam, resulting in an additional expenditure of around ₹800 per tonne.

The BJP Rajya Sabha member maintained that RINL is the largest industrial enterprise in Andhra Pradesh. Its performance has a significant effect on the industrial economy of Andhra Pradesh. In addition, RINL’s performance impacts the livelihoods of lakhs of families in and around Visakhapatnam.

In this regard, Narasimha Rao requested that the supply of iron ore to Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited, Visakhapatnam from NMDC’s mines in Chhattisgarh must be restored at the earliest.

Further, the Rajya Sabha member sounded an alarm that at present, RINL is running with only four days’ stock of iron ore, while the plant requires a minimum of 10 days’ stock even to operate two blast furnaces and 15 days of stock to operate three blast furnaces.

Narasimha Rao said as both RINL and NMDC are under the administrative ambit of the Ministry of Steel, central minister Scindia must intervene and set the matters right.