Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers H.N. Ananth Kumar has reportedly assured the joint action committee of three urea manufacturing units in south India to continue the subsidy for naphtha-fed urea production beyond 100 days from January 7.
A delegation of the Committee, comprising members from Mangaluru Chemicals and Fertilisers (MCF), Madras Fertilisers Ltd., (MFL) and Southern Petrochemical Industries Corporation, Tuticorin, met Mr. Kumar in Bengaluru on Sunday to thank him for the effort in restarting the urea production, which had been stopped since October 1, 2014.
K.N. Suryanarayana, President of MCF Mangala Workers Union, who led the delegation, told The Hindu that they conveyed the concern of employees about the future beyond 100 days breather given by the central government. It urged the Minister to take suitable action to continue with the existing subsidy system even after the expiry of 100 days.
The Minister assured the delegation that he would take necessary steps to continue the subsidy for urea production beyond 100 days. After a gap of about three months, the three units were permitted to continue with naphtha-fed urea production on January 7 following non-availability of natural gas though they had geared up for gas-based urea production. The centre however had said the subsidy would be paid on spot-RLNG prices and not on naphtha prices.
