Mangalore: The employees of Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilizers (MCF) staged a massive demonstration protesting against the decision to halt production, here in front of the factory premises on Wednesday.
Holding placards and shouting slogans, the employees requested the Union government to provide an extension until the pipeline between Kochi to Mangalore to transport gas gets completed. Surya Narayan, an employee said there are more than 2,000 people working for MCF. If the government shuts down, all of us will be on the streets, he said.
The previous Union government had directed the factory to replace naphtha with natural gas for production of ammonia and then urea to reduce the burden of subsidy on the government. While, the MCF has installed the required machinery to produce urea using natural gas, GAIL has not yet laid a pipeline.
According to the reports, the actual cost of production of urea per ton using naphtha is about Rs 48,000 to Rs 50,000 while it is sold at Rs. 5,300 a ton to farmers. The Union government directly pays the subsidy to the factory, instead of individually paying to farmers.
CM to hold meeting
Talking to the press persons on the sidelines of a programme at Pilikula, Mangalore on Wednesday, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said a meeting of stake holders will be called for as early as possible to discuss on the issue of MCF closure.
Ananth Kumar seeks extension
Union minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers H.N Ananth Kumar on Tuesday said he has sought a six months extension of time for the Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilizers (MCF) to continue with naptha as the raw material for urea production.
