The management of Dunlop India, on Thursday, submitted a proposal for reopening the mother unit at Sahagunj in Hooghly district, saying that it would need to shift 336 of the 790 employees on the unit's rolls.
The management told the State Government that it was simultaneously submitting the proposal to the State Labour Department as well as the three recognised unions.
The company had said at last week's tripartite meeting that it would submit a proposal for reopening the unit which remained closed for long. Recently, the High Court, after hearing liquidation cases filed by the company's creditors, had appointed an officer to make an inventory of Dunlop's assets at Sahagunj. The company management had said at the labour meet that it was keen to reopen Sahagunj.
Thursday's proposal said that while 454 persons would be absorbed in the first year in phases, the remaining 336, would have to be transferred to the units run by the Pawan Kumar Ruia group in Maharastra and Karnataka. The plan of action is to absorb only 57 workers initially, followed by 162 and then 235 persons. It also said that the company would earmark Rs.50 lakh a month for settling the dues of the 319 people who had opted for an early retirement scheme (of a total workforce of 1,200 at takeover in 2006). The remaining 91, who had neither opted for ERS nor had they been absorbed, may be offered a one-time-settlement, which would also be paid out of the Rs.50 lakh kitty.
Labour Minister Purnendu Bose said that while the unions were in touch with the State Government, they did not seem to have heard of the proposal so far.
