“Gadchiroli is developing into a steel city, with the iron industry significantly generating employment for the Dalit, tribal, and backward class communities in the area. This growth is improving their standard of living and transforming Gadchiroli. The district’s per capita income will rise in the coming years and Gadchiroli will stand first in the State,” stated Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. CM Fadnavis laid the foundation stone of various projects of Lloyds Metals and Energy Limited (LMEL) at Konsari in Gadchiroli district on Tuesday. The CM inaugurated an iron ore grinding plant with a capacity of 5 million tonnes per annum at Hedri, an 85-km-long slurry pipeline between Hedri and Konsari with a capacity of 10 million tonnes per annum, and a pellet plant with a capacity of 4 million tonnes per annum at Konsari.

 

He also inaugurated an integrated steel plant with a capacity of 4.5 million tonnes per annum at Konsari, a 100-bed hospital, a CBSE school and laid the foundation stone of the Lloyds Employee Colony project in Somanpally. Minister of State for Finance and Planning Adv Ashish Jaiswal, Padma Shri awardee social activist Tulsi Munda, MLAs Dharmaraobaba Atram, Dr Milind Narote, Special IGP Sandeep Patil, Collector Avishyant Panda, DIG Ankit Goyal, SP Nilotpal, Managing Director of Lloyds Metals B. Prabhakaran, Vice Chancellor of Gondwana University Prashant Bokare, Sarpanch of Konsari Shrikant Pavade were prominently present. Fadnavis said special emphasis will be given on transforming Gadchiroli into a ‘steel hub’. This vision is being realised through the efforts of Lloyds, which is actively working to change the face of the region.

 

It is particularly encouraging to note that iron ore mining, which began in 2016 after overcoming numerous challenges, has already created employment for 14,000 local residents, he further added. The Chief Minister stressed on achieving development without destroying the natural resources of Gadchiroli such as water, forest and land. The 80-kilometer-long slurry pipeline will help prevent pollution, which will reduce carbon emissions by about 55 percent. This slurry pipeline is the first in the State and the fourth in the country, he informed. He also assured pollution-free development by emphasising on ‘green transportation’ through running e-vehicles and gas. He announced the goal of increasing the forest cover of Gadchiroli by planting one crore trees in the next two years. “Good education and health facilities will be available here. Gadchiroli’s identity of the Maoist-affected district is being erased. This change was possible only because the Maoists abandoned the path of violence and accepted the Constitution,” he pointed out. He appealed to the remaining Maoists to put down their weapons, accept the Constitution and come into the mainstream. Although gun-based Maoism is ending, he appealed to be careful of ‘urban Maoism’. Lloyds Metals Managing Director B Prabhakaran made the introductory remarks and gave information about various development works being carried out through the project. Former MP Ashok Nete, former MLA Dr Devrao Holi, Krishna Gajbe, Ramesh Barsagade, Prashant Waghre and other dignitaries were present at the programme. 

 

 

Lloyds Metals and Steel is targeting to invest over Rs 40,000 crore to develop a steel plant and other units in Vidarbha’s Gadchiroli district over the next five years, a top official said on Tuesday. The law and order situation in the eastern Maharashtra district impacted by Left Wing Extremism (LWE) is improving, and attempts are essential to mainstream the youth, MD B Prabhakaran told PTI over the phone. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who is also the Guardian Minister, inaugurated a 90-km pipeline and a pellet plant built by the company in Gadchiroli earlier in the day.

 

“We have a Rs 45,000 crore investment plan for the district, of which Rs 5,000 crore has already been invested,” B Prabhakaran said. When asked how it will fund the capital expenditure in Gadchiroli, Prabhakaran said it will depend on internal accruals and also raise fresh funds if need be. He reminded that last year, it had raised over Rs 4,000 crore from a qualified institutional placement of shares. At present, the company’s assets in the district include an iron ore mine in Surjagad, and the upcoming investments include a Rs 15,000 crore ‘beneficiation plant’, having a capacity of 45 million tonnes per annum and Rs 22,000 crore for a steel plant with a 4.5 million tonnes capacity, he added.

 

Prabhakaran said the company will be investing up to Rs 5,000 crore per annum from here on, he said, adding that the overall employment generated by Lloyds will triple to 30,000 by the end of the investment cycle. Things are “slowly changing” in the district, he said, adding that an already existing iron ore mine has been secured, using equipment of the kind used by the US in Afghanistan. With a history of protests like the ones in Surjagad, B Prabhakaran said the company is focusing on taking along the local community, which explains investments in hospitals and schools locally. He said nearly all the staff of the company have an equity stake in the company. The concession for the mine was signed over 15 years ago, but operations began only after 2021, he said, blaming the Naxalite problem in the intervening time.