Nagpur: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has asked his cabinet colleague, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri to move a major project under the latter’s ministry from the proposed site at Ratnagiri to Nagpur.
In his letter dated February 14, Gadkari refers to the refinery and petrochemical complex (RPC), which was proposed near Ratnagiri. Gadkari pointed out to Singh that the latter had “secured” the location of the project in Nagpur, if land was made available.
Gadkari wrote that such projects “required huge land”, and the Butibori MIDC which is a “five star MiDC in Maharashtra” has thousands of acres of land available, as well as major facilities. “National highways can be used as a right of way (ROW) for laying a product distribution pipeline,” he said.
Since the project was originally proposed for Ratnagiri, Gadkari added that a decision on it could take a long time. “The Government of Maharashtra has been requested to communicate its position on the availability of land for the planned project in Rajapur (Ratnagiri). It is not known how long this (the decision) would take. In such a situation, I propose to prefer Nagpur for the project,” he said.
The MP for Nagpur then highlighted the various infrastructure projects that have sprung up near the area. He spoke of a dry port at Sindi (Wardha). “A dry port can get maximum RPC activity to provide two-way logistics. The newly built Samruddhi Mahamarg can get a fixed income from PRC as right of way for laying crude oil pipelines earning annual rents to Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation in crores,” Gadkari said.
The Minister of Roads, Transport and Highways has said that RPC will need a huge amount of water and it can come from the nearby Gosikhurd Dam. Gadkari added that about five million jobs could be generated directly and indirectly if the project is transferred to Nagpur.
He also put in writing his “promise” to make the land necessary for this project available by maintaining “immediate discussions with the government authorities of the State”. Gadkari added that with land availability, the project must now be sanctioned for Nagpur.
The Union Minister said this would stimulate the creation of manufacturing units using crude oil products and by-products.
Welcoming Gadkari’s proposal, Vidarbha Economic Development Council (VED) Chairman Shivkumar Rao said, “The benefits of such a project will accrue to both companies using these inputs as availability will increase and transportation costs will increase. will decrease. Bitumen is a by-product and is used in road construction.
VED Vice President Pradeep Maheshwari has been a strong supporter of the project. “RPC at Vidarbha will save the huge costs currently incurred on bitumen logistics. Thousands of kilometers of roads under construction require frequent maintenance, and bitumen is the most expensive input,” Maheswari said.