Mandya Paper Mills To Start Production By July

Mandya National Paper Company Mills will start commercial production this July.

The mill will use waste paper as raw material instead of bagasse.

The government of India has provided Rs 8 crore for the mill. Out of this, Rs 4 crore will be used as working capital, said A R K Rao, chairman-cum-managing director of the holding company, Hindustan Paper Corporation(HPC). Rao said the reopened mill will manufacture craft paper. The government has made it clear that the mill will be sold and with that end in view HPC has been asked to make the mill operational.

The Mandya National Paper Company Mills in Karnataka has been closed since April 1993. The mill, which has a capacity of 18,200 tonnes per annum for writing and printing paper, was taken over by Hindustan Paper Corporation in January 1974.

 

Since the takeover, HPC has pumped in Rs 35 crore up to March 1997.

This included providing temporary accommodation, payment of wages and other expenditure.

According to Rao, after the reopening, the mill will take about four months for its production to stabilise and only then will attract prospective buyers.

SBI Caps, its merchant bankers, may be asked to find a buyer for the mill.

However, the government may even go in for a joint venture if suitable proposals are made.

One of the strong points for the ailing mill is the possession of a licence to set up a sugar mill in its vicinity. This will give enough bagasse as raw material for the mill.