Delay proves 'deadly' for JK Lakshmi Cement in Chhattisgarh

After getting mining lease (ML) to start its cement production operation in Chhattisgarh, it took nearly 25 years for the JK Lakshmi Cement to activate the proposal.

A major unrest simmering against the company over the years spilled out in open on April 5. Villagers agitating for employment in the company stormed into the under-construction cement plant of the company in Durg district and set it on fire in the first incident of such magnitude in Chhattisgarh.

The JK Lakshmi Cement was awarded mining lease to explore limestone in 267.95 hectare of area in Dhikudiya village of Durg district in 1985 by the erstwhile Madhya Pradesh government. The ML was issued in company's former name Straw Products Ltd that was later changed to JK Lakshmi Corporation limited.

The company however did not take any initiative on the ML it was granted. Since there was no progress, the erstwhile Madhya Pradesh government cancelled the ML on June 3, 1997-after nearly 12 years of permitting the company to explore limestone and set up cement plant proposed about five km from the mine.

"The JK Lakshmi cement missed the opportunity as people at that particular time were supporting industries in the region," a senior state government official told Business Standard. In between 1991 and 1994, three major cement plants started its commercial production in Chhattisgarh. It included Lafarge (then Tata cement), L&T and Grasim.

But JK Lakshmi Cement failed to make any progress in its plan to start operation in Chhattisgarh. The company moved to the Mines Tribunal challenging the Madhya Pradesh government order and got its quashed on February 8, 2002 after Chhattisgarh got bifurcated.

In 2008, the Chhattisgarh government reinstated the ML with a set of conditions. However, it took another two years for the company to ink a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the state government for setting up 2.7 Million Tonne in the area. The JK Lakshmi Cement was the last to sign MoU on July 2010 and since then the state government had not inked any agreement with the core industry.

"The company could have easily set up the plant then as land was not a big issue at that point of time," convenor of Chhattisgarh Bachao Andolan Alok Shukla said. In 80s and 90s, only trade union related issues were going against the industry and there was no problem in putting up a facility, he added.

The LK Lakshmi Cement did not respond to the query sent for its version for the delay.