The Centre has decided to constitute a Task Force to examine the possibility of setting up of a steel factory at Bayyaram in Khammam district.
The decision to constitute a Task Force was taken after chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao urged the Centre to set up a steel factory in Bayyaram district.
Rao, on the first day of his Delhi visit on Friday, called on Union minister of steel and mines Narendra Singh Tomar at Udyog Bhawan.
‘’The minister told us to constitute a Task Force. The Task Force will give its report within 60 days after which the Centre will take a decision on setting up steel factory,’’ Rao told reporters in Delhi.
“The Union minister wanted basic amenties for setting up the steel factory including land and others to be provided by the state. We told him that the state will give all the needed support,” Rao said.
According to sources, the meeting between Tomar and Rao revolved around exploring investment and industry potential in and around Bayyaram mines, located in Khammam district.
“Hinting at insurgency in Bayyaram area, Chandrasekhar Rao solicited support of the Centre in establishing a steel industry in the affected region,’’ says an official release from the ministry of steel and mines.
Secretary of ministry of steel Rakesh Singh apprised the meeting of a feasibility study already conducted by the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) on setting up of a steel factory in Bayyaram.
“Different mechanisms and permutations were discussed to evolve a plan wherein a major industry, whether mining, steel-making, pellet-making, or a combination of all, could be operationalised efficiently,’’ Rakesh Singh said.
“The state and Central governments must step in with sops to guarantee commercial viability of the project,” Singh said. He averred that the target of achieving 300 million tonnes of steel production by 2025 gives enough elbowroom to set up green-field capacities. He also suggested that a Special Purpose Vehicle could be initiated for this project, on the lines of those already established in the states of Jharkhand, Karnataka, Odisha and Chhattisgarh.
On his part, the chief minister expressed eagerness to facilitate such an investment by providing captive mines, discounted land and connectivity with ports. Other matters, such as return on investment, technology of production, basis for shareholding and others were also deliberated in detail.
It was decided that a Task Force comprising Central, state and PSU representatives, will conduct an in-depth study of the existing alternatives in a time-bound manner, based on which a decision will be taken on the proposed Bayyaram steel plant.
Meanwhile, emphasising on the need to revive mining sector, Tomar urged Rao to identify mines for auction at the earliest. “We are framing rules and procedure with regard to auction and preparing necessary documents to kick-start auctioning of mines,” Tomar said. “States are exhorted to involve PSUs involved in mining work, to help build a robust mineral inventory database,” Tomar added.
Busy Day for CM in Delhi
It was a busy day for chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on the first day of his five-day tour in Delhi. He called on Union minister of steel and mines Narendra Singh Tomar, Union environment minister Prakash Javadekar and Union health minister Jagat Prakash Nadda. Later, Rao called on Chief Election commissioner HS Brahma. Of the 10 Union ministers Rao planned to meet, he called on three ministers on the first day of his visit. Rao already spoke to Brahma over phone before leaving for Delhi. Rao discussed about the biennial elections to State Legislative Council.
AIIMS at Bibinagar: In his deliberations with Nadda, Rao said the AIIMS like institute for Telangana should be set up at NIMS building at Bibinagar in Nalgonda district. Rao thanked Nadda for the Centre’s timely help to stop the spread of sine flu virus. During his meeting with Javadekar, Rao sought the environment and forest clearances for various projects in the state. Union minister Bandaru Dattatreya, TRS secretary-general K Keshava Rao, several ministers, chief secretary Rajiv Sharma and TRS MPs accompanied Rao during his Delhi visit.
Source: The New Indian Express