At a seminar recently by the Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers on the ‘Prospects of Alumina and Aluminium Industry in Odisha,’ many eminent scientists, academicians, engineers and industry houses interacted on the importance of bauxite, alumina and aluminium for development of Odisha.
Speaking on the occasion, president and COO of Vedanta Aluminium Ltd Dr Mukesh Kumar pointed out that Odisha is blessed with high quality bauxite reserves, and based on the present analysis nearly 60 per cent of India’s reserves are available in Odisha. However, this wealth of natural resources could not be translated into the State’s economic prosperity. The availability of such vast natural resources could have been used for turning the mineral and metal potential of Odisha into a goldmine and eradicating poverty, but unfortunately the State is still reeling under chronic poverty without realising the benefits of these natural resources.
Dr Kumar said it has been projected that the country’s aluminium demand may touch around 5 MT by 2015 and 10 MT by 2020 which can generate employment to nearly 7 million people by 2020. Besides, the industry can contribute nearly Rs 33,000 crore annually to the exchequer. If immediate measures are not taken to boost aluminium production domestically, the targets of electrifying all the villages would also be difficult to achieve in the absence of power distribution network, which is the main consumer aluminium.
He further observed that India, particularly Odisha which is the main depository of aluminium reserves, could not take the advantage of its mineral wealth and, accordingly, not even a single alumina refinery and smelter could have been put up in the State even after 25 years of commissioning of Nalco. The Vedanta integrated aluminium complex set up in Odisha is also forced to run at lower capacity and no bauxite from the State could be made available to the project.
Also present on the occasion were Padmashree PK Jena and academician Prof Omkar Nath Mohanty. They said that Odisha’s rich mineral resources need to be utilised effectively and efficiently for inclusive growth. The industry as well as scientists and experts appealed to the policymakers to realise that time has come when one must start using the State’s mineral wealth for eradication of poverty and bringing the State as a leader in the GDP contribution of the nation.
Former IPICOL chairman HP Mishra said it is high time companies shifted from basic metal production to alloy production, which would benefit the downstream industries in adding value to aluminium. The aluminium industry can provide opportunities for other ancillary units like caustic soda plant based on salt and lime, kiln plant, casting and extrusion facilities for automobile components and aluminium alloys manufacturing facilities for space and defence.
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