Seven cement plants out of 10 under CCI to be closed down: Govt

New Delhi, Dec 13 (UNI) The government has decided to close down seven non-operating cement plants out of the ten run by the Cement Corporation of India(CCI), while the remaining three will be expanded and modernised, Minister for Heavy Industries Santosh Mohan Deb told the Lok Sabha today.

''The machinery of the plants being closed down has become obsolete, while the remaining three plants, which will continue to run, are earning good profits,'' he said replying to a discussion on the Dalmia Dadri (Acquisition and Transfer of Undertakings) Amendment Bill, 2006.

The Minister said those cement plants, which could not be revived, were being sold off as no private sector company was willing it. ''People were more interested in buying the land of the cement plant than running the factory,'' he noted.

Referring to the Bill, which was eventually passed by a voice vote by the House, Mr Deb said that the Government had accepted the recommendation of the Parliamentary Standing Committee to close and dispose off the assets of the Charkhi Dadri Cement Plant and there was ''no question of keeping the House in the dark.'' Since this company was taken over by an Act of Parliament, the matter regarding its sale had also come up for consideration in Parliament, he said, adding that the government did not want to go in for plants where there is private investment.

Elabaorating on the reason for the Bill, he said that in view of the judgement of the Supreme Court, it had been decided to suitably amend the Dalmia Dadri Cement Limited (Acquisition and Transfer of Undertaking) Act, 1981 to empower the CCI to close and dispose off the assets of Charkhi Dadri Cement Plant, based in Haryana.

Stressing that there was a ''transparant panel'' to see to the sale of its land through public auction, Mr Deb said that whatever price was fixed in the auction will be payable by the buyer.

''Liabililties will be paid through the proceeds of the sale of the land,'' he added.

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