Karnataka govt plans 300-km steel corridor
T E Narasimhan / Chennai August 10, 2009, 0:02 IST
The Karnataka government is planning to develop a 300-km ‘steel corridor’, and the state expects this project to attract investments worth Rs 20,000 crore from steel majors. The corridor, which is expected to create 200,000 direct and indirect jobs, is planned around the iron ore-rich Bellary-Hospet area in eastern Karnataka.
Speaking to Business Standard on the sidelines of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)’s Suminfra 2009 meet, V Madhu, principal secretary (infrastructure development), said the state wanted to move from just exporting ore to value-added production of steel.
Mining and steel majors including NMDC, Tata Steel, JSW and Brahmani have evinced interest in the project. The idea is that each steel manufacturer could erect a manufacturing unit of at least two million tonne, he said.
Work on a 120-kilometre rail link between Hubli and Ankola and identification of 500 square kilometre of land for the industrial park is already on. Tenders for development of the park will be floated in two months, he added.
Madhu said the government also wanted a nuclear power unit in the corridor. “We met the chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, and gave our recommendation to set up a nuclear plant at Tadri. ” The government is also promoting a port at Tadri on the west coast,” he said.
