As the 17th All India CITU conference concluded in Bengaluru on Sunday, delegates started returning to their hotels to prepare for the journey home. Among them were union leaders of the Vizag Steel Plant, also known as Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL). The factory’s workers have been protesting privatisation for 710 days.

Newsclick caught up with CH Narasinga Rao (70), CITU state general secretary and chairman of the Visakha Ukku Parirakshana Porata Committee (VUPPC), at the Moti Mahal Hotel, Gandhinagar. He spoke about how the workers have resisted the 100% privatisation of the plant.   

When did the Vizag Steel Plant start operations?

The plant started operations in 1987. Though the foundation stone was laid by Indira Gandhi in 1971, funds hadn’t been allocated to the project. During the Janata Party government, Rs 1,000 crore was allotted in the Budget, and the construction started. The project was not conceived by the government alone; there was a huge struggle for it. Schools and colleges were closed for several months in 1966. This culminated in a police firing on protestors. In total, 32 people died during the protests. Four years later, the plant was sanctioned by the government. 

What was the reason for the struggle? 

People expected that industrialisation will create jobs. There were four steel plants: Bhilai, Bokaro, Durgapur and Rourkela. All were in north India. The government announced that the fifth one would be set up in Andhra Pradesh but did not sanction funds for construction. So, the people fought for the project.

Vizag had a port and the other plants were located close to mines. Research showed that the transportation of heavy metals is cheaper by sea. Even today, it is the only steel plant in India located in a port city.

The agitations continued for one year (1966) and spread throughout the state. The police firing happened in Warangal, Hyderabad and Vizag. In 1967, general elections were held, but the project was still not announced. In 1971, Congress (under Indira Gandhi) was growing apprehensive about the ‘syndicate’ (a political faction within Congress) and announced the project. 

When did the agitation against privatisation start?

There have been attempts to privatise the plant since the 1991 economic liberalisation. The government tried to divide some departments and lend the assets to private players. It tried to partly privatise departments like the thermal plant, oxygen plant, steel melting shop, etc—but never the entire plant.

On January 27, 2021, the government released a notification about the ‘strategic sale’. This was the first time a government signalled its intention to sell 100% of its stake in the plant. Immediately, we started a protest and put up a pandal with hundreds of workers starting a hunger strike in shifts. A team was scheduled to visit Vizag in November 2021 to start the valuation of assets. We prevented them from entering the plant. The hunger strike has been continuing for the last two years.

The government partly divested its stake (3.5%) in the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) by going for an IPO. It has divested some portions in BPCL, HPCL, ONGC and many other public sector companies. But because of our struggle, the government still holds a 100% stake in the Vizag Steel Plant. 

Have there been any strikes?

We were on strike for three days. Solidarity events were held throughout the state with CITU holding conferences in every district. We pressured the state government to pass a resolution in the Assembly opposing the ‘strategic sale’. Even during the strikes, we ensured that the temperature in the blast furnaces was under control. If the blast furnace melts, nobody can open it again. It will result in a loss of thousands of crores. We take care of the plant even during strikes. 

This is a highly skilled job.

Yes. The workers are trained at it is and polytechnics and many of them have engineering degrees.

How many workers are employed at the plant?

There are 16,000 permanent workers and 14,000 contractual. When older workers retire, the management does not replace them. Therefore, the workload on current workers is increasing. Despite this, production hasn’t dropped. But now, the government is trying to paralyse the plant’s functioning. Blast furnace number 3 has been closed. It is an important department in the smelting process. 

Could you elaborate on the struggle committee?

The committee has 23 associations of permanent and contractual workers. We formed it as soon as the government released the notification. In Telugu, it is called Visakha Ukku Parirakshana Porata Committee. The three largest unions are CITU, AITUC and INTUC. 

Who was in line to purchase the plant?

South Korean steel company POSCO had signed an MoU with the government to take over the land belonging to the plant. POSCO’s Indian partner is very close to the Central government.

Could you speak a little about your background?

I completed my BL (bachelor of law) from Andhra University in 1978. Six of my classmates are High Court Judges. Another colleague of mine, K Yerran Naidu, became a Cabinet minister.

After graduation, I dedicated my life to CITU. From the construction of the Vizag Steel Plant till today, I have been a part of the union. In total, 40,000 contract workers were brought in to construct the plant. We had to fight with the management several times to ensure that the workers received their entitlements. In those days, labour regulations were not followed. But workers were united during important issues even if they did not directly affect them.

There is a 100-bed hospital attached to the plant. There were attempts to privatise it, but we resisted. Now, POSCO is trying to take over our plant. It is one of the worst companies I have ever come across. No other company in the steel industry has been automated to this level. While we have 20-tonne trucks, POSCO uses 100-tonne driverless trucks. It runs a steel plant in South Korea with an annual output of 20 million tonnes with 4,000 workers. At the Vizag plant, the annual output is 7 million tonnes with an employee strength of 30,000. 

How crucial is the plant for Vizag’s economy?

This is one of the largest employers in the region. In FY 2021-22, it had an annual turnover of Rs 28,000 crore and a net profit of Rs 1,900 crore. This is national wealth. How can anyone think of selling it?

In the last three years, steel companies have announced huge profits. 

There is a reason for this. In the last three years, the government changed the rule for companies that owned captive mines. Earlier, they were supposed to exclusively use iron ore for their own production needs. Now, companies with captive mines can sell 10% of iron ore in the open market. Only the Vizag plant missed out because we don’t have our mine. During the CITU conference, the federation on steel presented a report on the sector. Besides the Vizag plant, the government has tried to put up other plants for ‘strategic sale’—at Salem (SAIL), Bhadravati (VISL) and Durgapur (IISCO). However, due to worker resistance, the process has stopped. Another issue faced by the workers is no wage revision. In other steel companies, wages were revised in February 2022. At the Vizag plant, wages haven’t been revised for 10 years. 

Courtesy: Newsclick

The post ‘Worker Resistance’ Foiled Attempts to Privatise Vizag Steel Plant appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Thousands of peasants and workers observed mahapanchayats at Visakhapatnam (Vizag), Vijayawada and Ongole in Andhra Pradesh on April 18 and 19, 2021. These programmes were decided weeks ago, prior to the alarming rise in Covid-19 cases.

All three events were presided over by All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC) State Convenor and former State Agriculture Minister Vadde Shobhanadreeshwar Rao and addressed by Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) Spokesperson Rakesh Tikait and others. Leaders blew conches for upcoming struggle, a traditional practice called ‘shankharavam’.

At Visakhapatnam, the rally took place at the beach with over 10,000 protesters, including a large number of women. Members of the Vizag Steel Protection Struggle Committee jointly organised the event wherein they condemned the central government’s decision on January 27 for a strategic 100 percent sale of Vizag Steel, the public sector pride of the state. The steel plant with over 35,000 workers was set up after much struggle and sacrifice.

“The plant, worth over Rs. 3 lakh crore, is sought to be sold by the Modi regime to its corporates for just around Rs 1,300 crore,” claimed a leader during the rally.

All major trade unions, along with major farmers’ organisations and political parties except the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led a massive state-wide struggle against the privatisation of Vizag Steel for the last three months, including a total Andhra Bandh.

Speakers stressed that the struggle for Vizag Steel is a national struggle against the BJP-RSS-Modi regime that is out to sell India through its privatisation drive. They also said that the Centre is attacking workers, peasants and agricultural workers, who produce the wealth of the country, through farm laws and labour codes. In a show of solidarity, farmer leaders visited the Vizag Steel and addressed workers there.

Later, on April 19, the AIKSCC organised the Vijayawada rally in a hall with physical distancing. Farmer leaders inaugurated a specially made exhibition on Delhi farmers’ struggle. Apart from peasants and workers, middle-class employees and youth participated in large numbers. A delegation of women farmers from Amaravati district met leaders and submitted a memorandum about their serious problems. They have been struggling for the last 500 days.

Then at Ongole, farmers assembled in the afternoon with enthusiastic response. The highlight was a series of caricatures of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and billionaire businessman Ambani that were put up at the venue. Songs and dances by agitators enlivened the events.

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A mass road blockade observed by Vizag Steel Plant (VSP) employees in Visakhapatnam district since March 8, 2021, could soon turn into a full-fledged strike by March 25, reported The New Indian Express.

Over the week, workers under the leadership of the Visakha Ukku Parirakshana Porata Committee blocked the National Highway-16 to protest Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s confirmation in the Lok Sabha of the plan to privatise the steel plant.

Hundreds of workers, which grew to thousands by Tuesday, assembled outside the gates of the steel plant and sloganeered against the central and state governments. They also burnt copies of Sitharaman’s statement at Kurmannapalem junction.

Owing to the blockade, nearly 80 vehicles carrying polling staff for the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) elections on March 10, including presiding officers and APOs, and election material to Gajuwaka polling stations were held up momentarily. During the voting, employees called off their protest but resumed relay hunger strikes on March 11.

Following the incident, Chief minister Jagan Mohan Reddy sent a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking an appointment to explain the on-ground situation and discuss alternatives to revive the VSP from losses. He also offered an all-party delegation along with various trade union representatives to discuss the issue.

However, after days of demonstration, the Committee confirmed their strike towards the end of the month. Workers also served a notice to the Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) Chairman and Managing Director demanding a withdrawal of the decision to sell 100 percent of the plant, scrap inter-secretaries group constituted to study the strategic sale and scrap the MoU signed with South Korean steel giant POSCO in 2019 for the construction of an integrated steel plant.

Another demand is the suspension of a recent MoU with National Buildings Construction Company (NBCC) on redevelopment and monetisation of land parcels at Maddilapalem and providing permanent employment to all left-out rehabilitation card holders.

The Porata Committee is also considering a ‘Chalo Delhi’ call with road blockades at national highways of all 13 districts in coming days.

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