Paswan: Under fire

Ranchi, Aug. 21: Mecon?s employees are stunned at Union steel minister Ram Vilas Paswan?s decision to say ?no? to a re-merger between the company and Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL).

?How can this be true? The minister had been very positive about the re-merger as recently as August 10 when we met him in Delhi along with Subodh Kant Sahay, the MP and minister of state for food processing industries,? said Gautam Chatterjee, general secretary of Mecon Executives? Association (MEA).

Paswan had also told the delegation ?not to lose heart? because the SAIL chairman and some bureaucrats had certain reservations about Mecon?s merger with SAIL, he said.

Paswan was positive about the proposal when he visited Mecon on September 16, 2004. He had said at the time that he would try and ensure a favourable result board if the Mecon board sent the proposal, said Chatterjee.

On March 17, the board decided to merge with its parent organisation. Mecon was part of SAIL till 1978.

?SAIL is going to undertake massive modernisation projects and Mecon, one of the leading engineering consultants, has been serving it as a consultant. In fact, SAIL has been our major source of jobs,? an official said.

?So, if Mecon merged with SAIL, it would be a win-win situation for both of us,? the official added. He went on to say, ?We are still hopeful because everything has been going smoothly. We can?t see why the steel minister would change his mind so suddenly.?

It is known that Mecon has been getting jobs from other sources, including the private sector. ?This means that the company?s credibility is well-established. Otherwise, why would the private parties keep coming back to us for consultancy?? asked the official.

A recent survey by MEA revealed that more than 98 per cent of Mecon executives favoured the merger with SAIL, Chatterjee said.

Another factor that needs to be considered is that MEA is a member of the Steel Executives Federation of India. This will be resolved if Mecon merges with SAIL, Chatterjee said.

Mecon?s merger with SAIL should not be seen as a merger but as a ?child returning to its parent?s house?, which it had left in 1978, said an executive. No one should have any objection to the re-merger as both Mecon and SAIL are doing well, he added.