The National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) is allegedly exporting iron ore to Japan at a price that is one-third of the price that domestic industry is paying for the steel making raw material.
The steel makers in Chhattisgarh are mulling a plan to block the transportation of iron ore from the NMDC facility if the mining major fails to take any decision to cut the price. Of the three 3 fully mechanised mines of the NMDC, Bailadila Deposit-14/11C, and Bailadila Deposit-5,10/11A are in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district. The facilities in Chhattisgarh produce maximum iron ore.
“The NMDC is exporting iron ore to Japan for Rs 1527 a tonne while the domestic industrialists are getting iron ore from the company at a price of Rs 5390 per tonne,” Chhattisgarh Sponge Iron Manufacturers Association President Anil Nachrani said. The sponge iron manufacturers and steel makers in the state have held a series of meetings to prepare the strategy for lodging protest against the discrimination.Umesh Agrawal, the former Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), said they had brought the matter to the notice of the Government of India, Chhattisgarh Government and NMDC management with a request to protect the interests of the domestic industry. “We want NMDC to sell iron ore at the same price at which it is selling the raw material to Japan,” Agrawal said.
Chhattisgarh has about 100 sponge iron units—about one third of country’s 300 sponge iron units located in West Bengal, Orissa, and Karnataka. The local industrialists are getting about 3 Million Tonnes of iron ore from NMDC, which is exporting equal quantity of iron ore to Japan.Agrawal quoting the senior officials of the ministry concerned said that due to bi-lateral ties, NMDC was probably selling iron ore to Japan at a much cheaper price. “But there was no logic in collecting three time more rate from the domestic industry,” he added.
In reality, Nachrani said, it was a national loss as NMDC had to incur a revenue loss of Rs 1000 crore by selling rich mineral to other country at a nominal price. “The industrialists in the state have decided to lodge a vehement campaign against NMDC in Chhattisgarh if it failed to take necessary action,” Nachrani added.As a first step, the industrialists are planning to stage rail rook agitation to block transportation of iron ore from NMDC facility to Visakhapatnam from where it is shipped to Japan.
The NMDC officials did not respond to an e-mail sent for its version on the issue.
