Jajpur: Celebration of Raja festival has lost its sheen in Kalinganagar Industrial Estate here as about 19,169 workers engaged in various industrial units have lost their jobs over one year.
The workers, who have lost their livelihood, include 17,629 casual labourers and 1,540 regular employees of firms operating in Kalinganagar.
While most of the retrenched casual labourers are from Tata Steel, majority of regular workers are from state-owned Nilachal Ispat Nigam Ltd (NINL). With jobs gone, it has become pointless to celebrate Raja for families of retrenched workers.
The retrenchment of workers has defeated the state government’s claim that industrialisation in Kalinganagar will bring in more employment and result in betterment of social and financial status of the local people.
The Union government is equally apathetic to the problem as it has taken no steps in arresting the trend. This has reduced the employment opportunities in Kalinaganagar industrial estate which has a number of steel industries in its territory.
According to reports, lured by the promises of employment and prosperity, residents welcomed the establishment of industries in Kalinganagar.
Mesco Steel was the first private firm to set its foot on Kalinganagar with an eye on acquiring mines. Later, it managed to acquire Dudhiali mines in Joda division in neighbouring Keonjhar district. It ran its plant before winding up operation and shutting it down November 26, 2015 on the alibi of incurring per month loss of over Rs 7 crore.
The company in its report submitted at the rehabilitation and peripheral development advisory committee (RPDAC) meeting had claimed of having 495 regular employees and 578 casual labourers on its rolls April 8, 2015.
However, reports available from the district labour office by March 2016, say the company had 244 regular employees and no casual labourers.
Similarly, 36,108 casual labourers were found working in Tata Steel under various consultancy firms by March 2015.
Among them 80 per cent of labourers were from this state. While 21,483 labourers belonged to semi-skill category, 8,295 were skilled and 6,330 were engaged as supervisors. However, by March 2016 the number came down to 17,699 after 18,409 labourers were dismissed. A majority of 9,382 labourers were from this district. The company has employed 80 regular employees.
Likewise, NINL a joint venture between MMTC and state-owned IPCOL and OMC, has dismissed over 1,133 regular employees. The company had 1,587 regular employees by March 31, 2015. Now, the company has only 454 regular employees as per reports available in the recent RPDAC meeting held April 8, 2015.
Such lay-offs were also witnessed in firms like Rohit Ferrotech and BRPL, reports said. PNN