The Board of Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), in a meeting held yesterday, accorded in-principle approval for installation of Steel Processing Units (SPUs) at Nahan in Himachal Pradesh and Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan. These will be set up in addition to the 9 SPUs in different states ÔÇô Bettiah, Mahnar and Gaya in Bihar, Hoshangabad, Ujjain and Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh, Guwahati in Assam, Srinagar in Jammu & Kashmir and Sitapur/Lakhimpur in Uttar Pradesh ÔÇô for which the SAIL Board has previously accorded in-principle approval.
SAIL is setting up SPUs in states where it does not have steel plants and where steel consumption is low as compared to the national average. With this initiative, SAIL is striving to make steel available to consumers in interior areas of the country and thus directly serve a large number of small consumers. The products from these units will be mainly used for construction purposes, both industrial and inpidual.
The SAIL Board has also accorded in-principle approval under its Corporate Social Responsibility programme for setting up an ITI at Samastipur in Bihar to help in skill development of the youth in remote areas. SAIL is already providing support to some ITIs in Jharkhand, Meghalaya, etc.
The institute in Samastipur will be developed in two phases for which work is likely to start immediately. In the first phase, construction of classrooms, library, workshops, administrative building, etc., will be taken up for a student strength of 120 with an investment of over Rs. 10 crore. In the second phase, further expansion of the ITI will be undertaken to accommodate an additional number of 160 students of the region. SAIL is already discussing the issue with Bihar government officials, who have been requested to take over the running and maintenance of the institute after its construction.