Unhappy over delays in modernisation of SAIL, a Parliamentary panel has asked the state-owned steel giant to chalk out an action plan for completing the expansion of projects within a stipulated timeframe. "SAIL should work out a concrete action plan to complete all the targeted modernisation and expansion plan of various plants within a stipulated timeframe," Standing Committee on Coal and Steel, chaired by Rakesh Singh, said in its report tabled in Parliament today. It also asked SAIL to apprise the committee in case of any revised cost-overruns. The committee said Internal and Extra Budgetary Resources (IEBR) for SAIL for 2018-19 are earmarked at Rs 4,000 crore and major portion of this outlay is towards likely payments for modernisation and expansion plan of SAIL plants/units for post completion contractual liability. The committee was particularly unhappy over delays in Bhilai steel plant modernisation. It said: "The committee are unhappy to note the delay in implementation of modernisation and expansion of Bhilai Steel plant which was originally to be completed in March, 2013 at a cost of Rs 17,265 crore." The plant is now anticipated to be completed by February, 2018 which primarily is due to poor performance of contractors, it said. SAIL had earlier said it reached the last leg of its Rs 70,000-crore modernisation programme. SAIL has undertaken the modernisation and expansion of its integrated steel plants at Bhilai, Bokaro, Rourkela, Durgapur and Burnpur and special steel plant at Salem. In the ongoing modernisation and expansion, the crude steel capacity is being enhanced from about 14 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) to 21.4 MTPA.
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