The Cachar Paper Project Workers and Employees Union (Independent) on Wednesday demanded the immediate declaration of the Hindustan Paper Corporation (HPC) Paper Mills Revival plan.
A report published in the The Telegraph stated that in a letter to the Union Secretary, Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises and Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, the union’s general secretary, AR Mazumder, said Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi had committed before the people of Assam that the HPC mills (in Cachar and Jagiroad in Nagaon) would be revived for large-scale employment generation and socio-economic growth in the industrially and economically remote region.
The union said the PM had mentioned several times, including in Parliament, that the revival plan was under consideration but nothing has materialised. It said the Centre filed an appeal before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) after the tribunal started an insolvency-resolution process vide order dated June 13. Insolvency is the state of being that prompts an entity — a person, family, or company — to file for bankruptcy. An entity becomes insolvent when it cannot pay its lenders back on time.
The tribunal fixed the date of hearing on Thursday “for a last chance to resolve the issue in question”. The letter also suggested some options before the Centre to revive the mill, including immediate approval of revival proposal of the HPC paper industries in Assam and submission of a revival plan before the NCLT on or before Thursday and immediate submission of a revival plan on or before October 10.
Two lakh families have been affected because of the closure of the mills. The salary of the employees of Cachar Paper Mill was stopped in October 2016. The production of the mill was suspended in December 2015 on the plea of financial crisis. The mill was established in 1988 at Panchgram in Hailakandi district.