Dharmendra Pradhan seeks Piyush Goyal's intervention to restart up-gradation at Odisha's Angul Aluminium Park

Union Minister of Steel Dharmendra Pradhan, has written to the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal, requesting the latter's intervention in "re-starting the project for up-gradation of infrastructure at Angul Aluminium Park, Odisha."

In a letter dated December 3, Pradhan wrote, "I am writing to seek your personal intervention to re-start the project for up-gradation of Infrastructure at Angul Aluminum Park, Odisha."

"Keeping in mind our Government's commitment to develop the mineral sector in Odisha and boost the State's economy, I request your personal intervention in directing concerned officials of your Ministry to undertake a review of the work done so far and re-start the project for up-gradation of Infrastructure at Angul Aluminum Park, with a renewed focus on ironing out bottlenecks for an expeditious completion of the project," Pradhan said.

He also requested to restore central assistance to the Odisha Aluminum Cluster at Angul under MIIUS "with the objective of enhancing industrial competitiveness of the Aluminum industry by providing quality infrastructure facility in the cluster which has the potential to become globally competitive."

Pradhan recalled that under the Modified Industrial Infrastructure Up-gradation Scheme (MIIUS) notified by Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), a project for up-gradation of Infrastructure at Angul Aluminum Park, Odisha was accorded approval on August 18, 2015 with a project cost estimated at Rs. 99.60 crore including a Central grant of Rs. 33.44 crore.

"The Implementing Agency (IA) for the said project was constituted as Angul Aluminium Park Private Limited (AAPPL). The Apex Committee of MIIUS in its meeting held on November 1, 2018 decided to drop the project due to the slow progress of the project and directed AAPPL to refund the released Central grant,' he said.

( With inputs from ANI )