November 22, 2008

Mr Marandi calls for allotting Chiria mine to SAIL without delay

Mr Babulal Marandi former chief minister of Jharkhand has lambasted state government’s indecisiveness leading to the delay in handing over Chiria mines to Steel Authority of India Limited. Mr Marandi said that renewing the lease could have solved unemployment problems and brought prosperity to the state.

He added that "When SAIL is ready to establish four big steel plants in the state and employ youths being lured by Maoists, what was wrong in renewing the mines lease? It would have brought about peripheral development in the area and many more steel plants would have come up."

Mr Marandi, blaming the selfish motives of ministers and corrupt bureaucrats for the state’s regression, said that "As Jharkhand and the centre are ruled by the UPA, the plants could have come up faster."

Chiria was leased by IISCO, which has been merged with SAIL. But the government has not renewed the lease and the issue is in court.