Trade unions oppose RINL pact with private steel company

"Visakhapatnam Steel Plant employees and trade union leaders oppose proposed handover of blast furnace to private steel giant, alleging financial weakening."

The proposed handover of blast furnace (BF)-III of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP) to a private steel giant is facing strong opposition from a section of employees and trade union leaders. The management of Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) has been busy signing MoUs related to the handover, according to VSP union leaders.

Visakha Ukku Parirakshana Porata Committee (VUPPC) convener J Ayodhya Ramu stated that the RINL management's actions are a deliberate move by the Union government to weaken the VSP financially, making it easier to hand over to a private player without any issues. BF-III has been closed for the past two years due to inadequate supply of raw materials, leading to further financial losses for the VSP.

The RINL called for expression of interest to resume operation of BF-III, and a private finance company has offered to invest Rs.800 crore to meet raw material requirements. However, the trade union leaders claim that the funds have been diverted for other purposes. The fight waged by the trade union leaders for over 1,000 days has focused on pressuring the Centre to withdraw the strategic sale of the RINL or consider merging it with SAIL to prevent further losses.

The trade union leaders are planning to meet national party leaders in Delhi on December 20 to exert pressure on the Centre to withdraw the strategic sale. They are also considering a bus yatra from Visakhapatnam to meet Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. In opposition to the management's move, a protest was carried out by the trade union leaders at VSP on Monday.