West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday asked JSW Steel Ltd, which has not been able to start building its integrated steel plant in the state, to compensate people who were to receive jobs at its proposed factory at Salboni in West Midnapore district.
Addressing a rally at Salboni on Monday, Banerjee said some 400 families sold land for JSW’s proposed factory and were promised jobs as compensation over and above the cash paid to them immediately.
JSW must pay these families Rs5,000 each every month until it is able to get its factory running at Salboni, Banerjee said, adding that the state government would have to seize the land from the steelmaker if it shows no sign of starting construction immediately.
JSW has in its possession around 4,300 acres to build its proposed steel and power plants at Salboni. Most of the land was leased out by the state government; the company directly bought only around 294 acres from local farmers.
To sweeten its compensation package, JSW had in 2007 offered jobs and shares in its Salboni unit to those displaced and was able to acquire the land peacefully while other companies faced protests against land acquisition.
Banerjee said on Monday that a tract as large as 4,300 acres couldn’t be held unless JSW started construction of its factory immediately. It must be redistributed among other firms that can create jobs, she added.
Late last year, JSW had said it would by April start construction of a power plant at Salboni. At that time it was still awaiting clearances from the environment and forest ministries.
The plant, JSW said last November, would produce 660 megawatt of power, and was to be built at a cost of Rs5,000-6,000 crore.
The proposed steel plant has been indefinitely delayed because the company could not tie up funds for it for want of assured supply of raw materials—coal and iron ore. When the foundation stone of the unit was laid in November 2008, it was envisaged that the plant would produce 10 million tonnes of steel a year besides producing up to 1,620 mw of power.
Biswadip Gupta, JSW Bengal Steel Ltd’s joint managing director and chief executive officer, refused to comment on Monday’s development.
Source: Live Mint
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