By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Dec 19: The Mawmluh Cherra Cemented Limited (MCCL), which was formerly renowned for producing high-quality cements, is about to end its legacy as the government has chosen to close the ailing company.
Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Tuesday stated that the government is working with the employees and stakeholders to resolve the issue amicably, and they have essentially decided to implement a voluntary retirement plan.
“We will proceed with the closure of MCCL and there will be a golden handshake with permanent employees,” the chief minister declared, adding that despite over Rs 300 crore having been invested in the project over the previous 15 years, the government still needs a sizable amount of funding to move forward with the project.
“We have made every effort to bring the MCCL back to life, but given the current situation, which is causing suffering for the public and employees, we must act decisively. Accordingly, we have decided to close the MCCL after holding appropriate stakeholder consultations to determine the terms and conditions,” he said.
Prior to the decision, the government had intended to pursue a joint venture, but it did not receive many encouraging responses, he pointed out.
“We felt it would be difficult to spend between Rs 150 and Rs 200 crore, so we gave an expression of interest for a joint venture, but the players we got were not at the level where they could do justice to the scale of investment,” he stated.
The government decided that closing the MCCL was the best course of action after reviewing the project with stakeholders. The government will close the project after talking over the terms and conditions with the stakeholders, he reiterated.
Established in the early 1960s (then undivided Assam) in the limestone-rich Sohra, MCCL is the only state-owned cement plant and the oldest public sector undertaking unit.