Dunlop factory at Sahaganj to reopen on March 6

The Dunlop factory at Sahagunj will reopen on March 6.

Through a notice at the entrance of the Sahaganj plant, the management of Dunlop India Ltd today informed employees that operations at the plant would resume on and from March 6.

As there have been quite a few cases of theft in the plant in recent times, 229 workers of Maintenance and Engineering division were asked through the notice to initially commence the repairing and refurbishing of the plant, Dunlop said in a release issued in Kolkata.

After the plant became ready for regular production, workers would be inducted in different departments in a phased manner.

Dunlop was taken over by Pawan Kumar Ruia from the Chhabria family in 2006, after which the Sahagunj factory, 40km noth of Kolkata, was reopened after a six-year lockout by the previous owners. Workers had not received wages or any statutory dues during the closure.

Ruia on reopening had reabsorbed most of the 3000-odd workers of the old factory and was said to be working on a scheme to pay off pending dues like unpaid electricity bills of six years for the factory and its huge township still occupied by people claiming to be workers of the closed company.

The company claimed in a release that several banks had given assurances on disbursal of working capital needed for running the plant in a sustained manner.

The Government of West Bengal on its part had said that the relief and incentives sought by the Dunlop management were under active consideration of the government, the release went on to add.

The release said that the management of Dunlop India hoped to sort out all pending issues with the labour unions after the commencement of the repairing and refurbishing.

The release said the management sought the co-operation of the labour unions in achieving industrial harmony at the Sahaganj plant.