The Orissa government has deferred a decision on according permission to a proposal of Tata Steel for setting up a 1.5 mtpa steel unit, official sources said today.
The government had kept Tata's proposal pending at the State Level Single Window Clearance Authority meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Ajit Kumar Tripathy last evening.
Tata, which has a sponge iron unit at Bileipadar under Joda tehsil in Keonjhar district, had evinced interest to set up a 1.5 mtpa steel plant adjacent to its old factory.
The steel major, which asked for 100 acre for setting up a second steel mill, also demarcated a huge open space near its sponge iron plant.
"Tata's proposal is deferred for decision in view of difficulties in acquiring land," Managing Director of the Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation Ashok Meena told reporters.
While taking up Tata's proposal, sources said, the SLSWCA, discussed land acquisition for the company. The meeting also discussed Tata's Kalinganagar project, which has not yet come up though the MoU for the 6 mtpa steel plant was signed way back in 2005.
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"Delay in implementation of the Kalinganagar project was also a factor for not giving the go ahead to the steel major's new proposal," a senior industry department official said.
Though the state owned Industrial Development Corporation said that land was available near Tata's sponge iron factory, it said that it would be difficult to acquire for the proposed new unit.
It may be recalled, at least 14 people were killed in police firing at Kalinganagar while acquiring land for Tata's Kalinganagar project.