RINL, NMDC production hit as workers remain on strike for 2nd day: Union

Thousands of workers of state-owned RINL and NMDC boycotted work for a second day on Tuesday as part of the nationwide strike, affecting steel production and mining operations, a union leader said.

Rajesh Sandhu, Secretary of NMDC Sanyukt Khadaan Mazdoor Sangh said all non-executive workers have boycotted work to join the two-day nationwide strike which will end on Wednesday morning.

"Intensifying their protest against government policies, NMDC workers stopped state transport buses in Chhattisgarh for about six hours from 5 a.m," Sandhu said adding NMDC would incur a loss of about Rs 200 crore due to the protest.

Over 10,000 non-executive employees of the company are observing the protest at NMDC mines and offices in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Telangana, Sandhu said.

J Ayodhya Ram, the President of the Steel Plant Employees Union (CITU), said workers at the RINL plant in Visakhapatnam did not report for work on Tuesday as well.

Around 8,000 non-executive Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) workers out of 11,000 are taking part in the ongoing nationwide strike called by central trade unions.

He further said production has been affected at the unit as only one furnace out of three is functional at the plant in Visakhapatnam. One was already under maintenance, the second one has been shut down as a precautionary measure.

In a statement, Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) said, "There was no impact of the strike on its production as the attendance at all its units was normal."

As many as 10 central trade unions on Monday began a two-day nationwide strike to protest against the government's alleged wrong policies that are affecting farmers, workers and the general public. The strike notices have been given by the unions in various sectors, such as coal, steel, oil, telecom, postal, income tax, copper, banks, and insurance.

SAIL and RINL are steel making companies under the Ministry of Steel. NMDC is the country's largest iron ore mining company under the ministry.