Keonjhar: Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi Thursday announced that world-renowned steel producer POSCO and India’s JSW Steel will jointly establish a mega steel plant in Keonjhar district, which will be Odisha’s second-largest steel plant.
The project, to be set up in the Patna area of Keonjhar, has been approved jointly by South Korea’s POSCO and India’s JSW.
Terming the project the fulfilment of a long-standing dream, various organisations and civic forums across Keonjhar district expressed their gratitude to the Chief Minister during an event held at the state guesthouse in Bhubaneswar.
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The demand for a steel plant in Keonjhar has been one of the oldest and strongest public demands in the region.
Majhi recalled that he had been pressing for the project long before assuming offi ce, and his party had included the steel plant in its 2024 election manifesto.
Hundreds of workers, members of tribal forums, student and youth associations, citizens’ groups, press clubs, intellectuals, and local public representatives from different parts of Keonjhar reached Bhubaneswar to thank the Chief Minister for his efforts.
Majhi said the prosperity of mineral-rich Keonjhar would contribute directly to the prosperity of Odisha.
He also pointed out that although Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the establishment of four mega steel plants in the country’s mineral-rich states, Odisha had previously been deprived due to a lack of political will.
“Today, under the double-engine government, the world’s largest steel manufacturing company is setting up a mega plant in Keonjhar,” the Chief Minister stated.
“This project will secure the future of the district and pave the way for a prosperous Odisha.
In the coming years, Patna will emerge as a modern city like Rourkela,” he said.
Majhi assured that largescale industrialisation will take place not only in Keonjhar but across the entire state under the present government.
PTI
