An aerial view of the Visakhapatnam steel plant.
| Photo Credit: File Photo/DEEPAK KR
The latest Expression of Interest (EoI) that has been issued inviting interested parties for the work of “Fire Fighting Prevention & Rescue Services” at Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited – Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (RINL-VSP) has left the plant employees worried.
‘’If this EoI goes ahead, the existing Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which has been providing its services for 40 years, will be withdrawn from the RINL-VSP’s fire fighting services, and the responsibility will be taken up by private parties,’‘ opined J. Ayodhya Ramu, a convener of the Visakha Ukku Parirakshana Porata Committee.
“The EoI is a conspiracy by the government to slowly privatise the steel plant. We will not tolerate it and will resort to any kind of protest if the authorities try to go ahead with it,” Mr. Ayodhya Ramu told The Hindu on Tuesday (December 24).
According to reliable sources, RINL-VSP has around 200 CISF personnel who look after the security and fire safety of the plant with sophisticated equipment round the clock. The CISF comes under the purview of the Union Home Ministry.
Extensive network
The plant has an extensive layout of fire water piping network provided with 2,744 internal fire hydrants, 14,000 fire extinguishers, 1,071 external fire hydrants, 86 fire monitors, and 28 fire pump houses. These are located at various places in the hydrant network to provide continuous water supply and are maintained and operated by various departments of RINL. In case of any fire, the central manual call points and fire detection and alarm systems installed in all major production units and fire hazardous areas help in communicating and alerting the fire department for its assistance.
Some of the major production and critical areas of the steel plant are: Raw Material Handling Plant, Coke Ovens & Coal Chemical Plant, Sinter Plants, Blast Furnaces, Steel Melt Shops, Mills, Air Separation Plants with Oxygen, Nitrogen and Argon Storage Facilities, LPG Storage Units, Thermal Power Plant, Water Management Plant, Gas Network, and Electrical Distribution Network.
As per the EoI, the interested agency should have experience in executing at least one work related to providing continuous fire fighting services to heavy industries like steel, chemical, petrochemical or power by handling 100 fire fighting personnel in the last seven years.
The scope of work includes providing fire fighting, prevention and rescue services in RINL Plant Area, Administration Building, Hospital Service, Hill Top Guest House, Township, schools, banks, and post offices.
When contacted, an official source at RINL-VSP said, “The EoI for the fire services is true. It is a mere EoI as on date. Many PSUs in the country also entrusted the fire fighting system to private parties.”
Published – December 24, 2024 08:11 pm IST
