RINL Workers Take Out March With Family Members For Remerger of RINL With SAIL
Hundreds of retired steel workers along with their family members participated in the march
The family members of RINL employees participated in large numbers in merger march from candle junction to SEA Bhavan demanding SAIL RINL Re-merger and immediate bailout package to run RINL with full capacity.
Their another prime demand is the steel sector, which is crucial for the development of the country, should be kept as a priority sector and Visakha Steel should be re-merged in SAIL.
The call given by the Steel Officers’ Association to the Steel Merger Initiative, as RINL is facing a severe financial crisis as they are unable to pay salaries, buy raw materials which led to produce at full scale, unable to make sales or legitimate payments like PF, retirement benefits, pensions to deceased family members etc..
Chairman of Steel Executive Federation of India (SEFI), Narendra Kumar Banchore, General Secretary Abakash Malik, Bhilai Steel Plant officers Association General Secretary Parvinder Singh, National Confederation of Officers Association NCOA Andhra Pradesh Region General Secretary Jagdish and three associations Working group members attended the *Ukku Vileena Deeksha” at SEA Bhavan from 8am to 8pm.
The steel workers along with their family members paid floral tributes to the late Amrita Rao’s statue at 7am and paid tribute to the 32 martyrs of the Visakha steel movement and marched from Candle Junction to SEA Bhavan. Subsequently, tributes were paid to the 19 people who died in the 2012 SMS 2 blast at SEA Bhavan premises.
Chairman, Steel Executive Federation of India, Narendra Kumar Banchore said that unfortunately steel has been placed in the non-priority sector but steel sector is very crucial for the development of the country and should be kept in the priority sector, soon after the central government announced the privatization of Visakha steel in January 2021 in the Corona situation Federation also held a meeting in Delhi on April 4th 2021 and discussed at length, concluded that if Visakha Steel is merged with NMDC Nagarnar steel plant and made into a single company , then Steel Authority of India Limited will be a strong steel manufacturing company and it will contribute to the development of the country. As per the new PSE policy, the government declared sale of NMDC Nagarnar steel plant and it was recalled in view of Chhattisgarh assembly election.
Subsequently, General Elections held in last May, after which SEA representatives met the Union Minister of Steel and Heavy Industries Kumaraswamy and the Minister of State Srinivasa Varma and requested for merger of RINL into Steel Authority of India Limited. The SEFI and NCOA appealed the same thrice for the same in the past one month. SEFI also appraised the minister that while expanding Steel Authority of India Limited with one lakh crores, it is not right to run Visakha Steel at low capacity or to sell it. MoS assured that soon discuss the issue of merger with SAIL, to run Visakha Steel at full capacity with the Prime Minister. SEA once again asked for immediate financial assistance to run Visakha Steel at full capacity in steel minister’s recent visit to Vizag Steel.
Hundreds of retired steel workers along with their family members participated in the steel merger initiation from 8am to 8pm. Retired Steel Executives Association President Secretaries Maturi Srinivasa Rao, Dadi Shivaram and a large number of union leaders expressed their solidarity with this initiative. RSEA president expressed concern that Visakha Steel will not get medical facilities even after retirement if it does not continue in the government sector. Senior officers of Visakha Steel also came in large numbers and demanded the merger of Visakha Steel with SAIL. The leaders of the Porata committee, Adinarayana, Mantri Rajasekhar, KSN Rao, Ramaswamy and several other leaders, congratulated the steel officers who called for the initiation and demanded that the central government announce financial cooperation and merger with SAIL should be announced immediately in this budget meeting. Ukku SC ST association leaders Buye Mallaiah, Toudanna, OBC association leaders Apparao , Srinivasa Rao Janasena leaders Gadasala Apparao, Gandham Venkatarao, Somanna came with their members and expressed their support. Steel Officers Association President Katam Chandra Rao General Secretary KVD Prasad Vice President Chandra Venkateswara Rao Joint Secretary Narasimha Working Group members requested Honorable Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu Garu, Gajuwaka MLA and AP Telugu Desam State President Palla Srinivasa Rao Garu, Visakha MP Bharat Garu, Jana Sena President Honorable Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan to take the initiative, to pass a resolution for steel merger in the assembly and asked the state government to provide immediate assistance.
