Jindal Group signs agreement to set up mega steel plant

Kolkata, Jan 11 (UNI) In a major industrial move, JSW Steel, a part of the O P Jindal Group, signed an agreement with West Bengal government today for setting up a 10 million tonne integrated steel plant at Salboni in West Midnapore district.

The plant, involving a total investment of Rs 35,000 crore, will be the largest in the country, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said.

The whole project is to be executed by a joint venture company of JSW Group, WBIDC and WBMDPC in three phases over a period of 12 years.

The joint venture company would complete the phase one, with three million tonne production in four years and expand it to 10 million tonne capacity from the date of execution of the agreement.

JSW Steel Ltd Vice-Chairman Sajjan Jindal said it would take 48 months to commission the project. The JSW project would also incorporate a 600 MW captive power plant.

The agreement came at a time when the state was amid a political turmoil triggered by the opposition over acquisition of agricultural land, especially in Nandigram and Singur.

The Chief Minister, however, said ninety per cent of the total 5,000 acres of land required for the project was vested with the government and the rest was owned privately.

''But I am sure these farmers will voluntarily give their land because what price they will get is more than what they are earning,'' Mr Bhattacharjee said in reply to a question.

Assuring that no homestead would be taken over at Salboni, the Chief Minister said the government has planned a full rehabilitation package that included vocational training, self-help, educational facility and health care, he said.

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