Left Parties Plan Maha Dharna in Vizag for Steel Plant

Visakhapatnam: The Left unions are planning to organise a Maha Dharna in Old Gajuwaka, Visakhapatnam, demanding the merger of RINL with SAIL and the clearance of all pending wages.

Releasing a poster at the CPM party office in Visakhapatnam, CPM City Secretary and Steel Plant Parirakshana Committee convener Dr B. Ganga Rao recalled that before the elections, NDA leaders promised to protect the steel plant from disinvestment. However, three months have passed, and no action has been taken.

"Believing these leaders, the people of Visakhapatnam gave a huge majority to the Alliance candidates," Ganga Rao stated.

He urged Alliance leaders to pressurise the central government to halt the privatisation of the steel plant and to demand its merger with SAIL.

Ganga Rao explained that due to a lack of raw materials, the steel plant is in a critical state, with only one of its three blast furnaces operational. The production rate has dropped from 21,000 tonnes per day to 4.5 tonnes per day.

Accusing the Centre of deliberately halting raw material supplies, he warned that if production stops, the blast furnaces’ batteries will die, costing thousands of crores to revive.

He noted that the plant can generate 536.6 megawatts of electricity, with 315 megawatts needed for its operations. The surplus could be sold, yet only 120 megawatts are currently being generated due to the shortage of coal. As a result, the plant is forced to purchase electricity from APEPDCL, costing `45 to 80 crores monthly.

Ganga Rao also highlighted that while the Centre invested Rs. 4,890 crores to establish the steel plant, it has since received `54,000 crores in taxes and dividends. He criticised the government for supplying raw materials to all steel plants except Visakhapatnam, causing a production cost increase of `4,000 per tonne.