Centre decides to close barrel manufacturing unit in Bengal
Kolkata: Around 80 people — 40 permanent employees and 40 on contract — will lose their job as the Centre has decided to close a unit of PSU Balmer Lawrie and Company Limited in Bengal. The industrial packaging unit of the PSU situated at Hide Road near Taratala in south Kolkata will be closed from September 1. The unit manufactures industrial barrel, which demand has fallen as oil refinery companies are not placing an order with the government bringing change in the procurement policy.
As many as 40 permanent employees will be losing jobs with the closure of the unit for which all approvals have been received from the Centre in July itself. There were 40 more employees who used to work at the unit under a contractor.
Trinamool Congress lashed the Centre for such a decision at this critical time of COVID-19 without discussing with the state government that adversely affects the federal structure of the country. "The reason cited for closing the unit is baseless. No demand for industrial barrels can be the excuse for closing the unit when similar five are running in different parts of the country as there are scopes for promotion of the same. Moreover, there is no report that it cannot be revived. They are taking multiple decisions like this just to deprive Bengal and we condemn such a decision taken without discussing with the state government," said the senior Trinamool Congress leader and Technical Education, Training & Skill Development minister Purnendu Basu.
When contacted, Prabal Basu, chairman and managing director of Balmer Lawrie, confirmed that the unit is closing from September 1. He further said: "All the 40 permanent employees have opted for VRS. But the other business of the PSU in the state will continue unaffected."
He further stated that the PSU was incurring a loss of more than Rs 7 crore a year as there was no demand for industrial barrels. There was no demand for the same in eastern India as the oil refinery companies stopped placing orders to the PSU with the changes in the government's policy in 2012. With the closure of the unit, the land will be surrendered to the Kolkata Port Trust from which it was taken on lease.
