Chhattisgarh Assures Raw Material And Land For Tata Steel Plant

Chhattisgarh assures raw material, land for Tata steel plant

by IANS, Raipur

20th February 2006

India's largest private sector steel maker Tata Steel Ltd. will get 500 million tonnes iron ore stocks for 50 years and 2,500 hectares of land for the upcoming plant in Chhattisgarh, the state government informed the assembly Monday.

"Tata Steel which inked a deal with the state government in June last year for setting up a five-million tonne per annum plant in mineral rich Bastar, 320 km south of the state capital Raipur, will get 500 million tonnes iron ore stocks from Chhattisgarh's Bailadila area in Dantewada district for 50 years besides 2,500 hectare land for the plant,' State Finance minister Amar Agrawal said.

Tata Steel will set up the integrated steel unit in two phases with a Rs.100 billion investment.

In reply to a question from the opposition Congress, the minister said that in addition to the iron ore stocks from the Bailadila mines, the government would recommend to the central government to provide iron ore through the public sector National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC), which has three major mining blocks in Dantewada.

Agrawal said the government would ensure coal linkage facility to the company through the public sector South Eastern Coalfield Limited (SECL) having headquarters at Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh.

Mineral rich Chhattisgarh has 23 percent of India's iron ore deposits and 18 percent of the country's total coal reserves.

The state government would also provide 322-mw power to Tata Steel for the Bastar plant till it sets up its own captive power plant and supply 5 million gallon a day (MGD) water during the plant construction period and 35 MGD when it actually starts production.

The state government will help in getting the railway ministry's green signal for laying tracks from the plant site to the nearest railway station for which land would be provided by the government and Tata Steel would fully compensate the affected landowners.

Agrawal said Tata Steel had assured that 90 percent of its total unskilled labour, 50 percent posts of skilled workers and 33 percent administrative posts would be filled from the state.