Panel asks government to ensure no more delay in NMDC steel mill.

A Parliamentary panel has asked the Steel Ministry to ensure that commissioning of the Rs. 15,525-crore plant by country's top iron ore miner NMDC is not delayed further.

The three million tonne steel plant was scheduled to be commissioned in February this year. It is now likely to be operationalised in December next year.

'Though the date of completion of the project has been rescheduled twice, Ministry of Steel/NMDC should ensure that no further delay occurs in the matter,' the Standing Committee on Coal and Steel said in its report tabled in the Lok Sabha recently

The committee also desired that environment clearance for the project be obtained expeditiously, while noting that the scheduled commissioning has been extended to December 2016 from May 2015 due to delay in certain green approvals.

'The committee have been informed that the likely date of commissioning of the plant is December 2016 as the environment clearance for the construction of steel plant from the Ministry of Environment and Forest has been received, stage II forest clearance for certain matters is still pending,' it said asking the government to expedite clearances.

Out of the proposed Rs. 15,525-crore project cost, Rs. 4,231 crore has already been spent on the mill, which is NMDC's first steel project, it said.


ET