Kudremukh Shram Shakthi Sanghatan met Union Railway Minister Sadanada Gowda and urged him to solve issues regarding availability of iron ore for its pellets plant at Mangalore. The Sanghatan also brought to Gowda’s notice the imposition of heavy charges (Distance Based Charges) by the Railways, along with fines, on the company in lieu of exporting the final product like pellet, which resulted in KIOCL stopping the export of pellets.
The committee requested the Minister to intervene and see that the company survives by protecting both the direct and indirect employees. The employees explained that, after KIOCL lost its captive iron ore mines in 2006 after a Supreme Court judgment, mining activity stopped at Kudremukh.
The pellet plant and blast furnace units of KIOCL at Mangalore are struggling to stay operational, and are totally dependant on iron ore brought from other States. The delegation, headed by National HMS Vice-President M Sureshchandra Shetty, met the Railway Minister in New Delhi.
The Minister assured the committee that action will be taken. General-Secretary S Venkatraya and Asst General-Secretary A Rajaguru were present during the visit. The employees later met Members of Parliament Nalin Kumar Kateel and Shobha Karandlaje and discussed the problems of KIOCL and its employees.