Posco withdraws staff from project site in Orissa

BHUBANESHWAR: Fearing the safety of its employees, Posco-India Pvt Ltd, a subsidiary of South Korean steel major Pohang Iron and Steel Co Ltd, has withdrawn most of its staff from Kujang near Paradeep port in Orissa.

The directors of Posco India are expected to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday to discuss how to take the company’s Rs52,000-crore steel project forward in the face of stiff opposition from local residents. The project is slated to produce 12 million tones of steel per annum in Orissa.

Those protesting against the project say the proposed plant will displace over 20,000 people in 15 villages and ruin their betel leaf farming. However, Posco said the plant will affect 500 families, but also create jobs.

Spokesman Sashanka Patnaik said of the 15 employees at Posco-India’s project office at Kujang, about 100 km from the state capital, 13 were  shifted to its headquarters in Bhubaneswar on Thursday.

The decision was taken following the abduction of four Posco executives, including three Korean nationals, on October 13. All of them have been released. Patnaik said the local police had issued a notice barring company officials from entering
the site without prior information. The company’s staff will resume duties after the government assures their safety, he said.

Company sources said after the meeting with the PM, members of the Posco board would also meet Orissa chief minister Naveen Patnaik, who is camping in Delhi.