HAL, small units starts operations, some in a fix over transport

Kolhapur/Nashik: Nearly 850 industrial units in Nashik were granted permissions to start operations, but only a 100 began work from Wednesday. In Kolhapur, as many as 854 firms had sought permission to start operations, but they face the challenge of connecting with related industries in Pune.
MIDC officials said only 850 industries from Nashik filed applications correctly and they have been permissions to start operations.“Of 850 industries, around 100 have started operations in rural parts especially Sinnar and Dindori. Another 300 units from Satpur and Ambad industrial estates have also been given permission,” said Nitin Gavli, regional officer, Nashik, MIDC.
Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd has started operations at its manufacturing unit at Ozar, 20 km from Nashik city. HAL sources said it has started operations with 30% manpower that resides in township, adjacent to its factory in Ozar.
HAL manufactures SU-30 aircrafts. Moreover, the Nashik unit is also engaged in overhauling both MiG 21 and SU-30.
HAL said it has total manpower of over 6,000 workers. Of which, 30% of the workers reside at the township at Ozar. Hence, these workers have been called for work, while we have not call remaining workers as they reside far away from the plant.
The Nashik Industries and Manufacturers’ Association (NIMA) said small and medium enterprises have started operations, but large industrial units are yet to start operations.
“There are around 15 SMEs in Sinnar industrial estates those have started operations,” said Sandip Bhadane, additional secretary of NIMA for Sinnar industrial areas.
Industrial Polymer, which manufactures rubber rollers at its Sinnar unit, started operations on Wednesday. “We have total 31 workers, but we started production with 25 workers. The company has its own quarters in the premises where the workers are staying. They have been provided all the facilities and we are taking precautions,” said S K Nair, chairman of Industrial Polymer.
Sachin Kankrej, director of Nupur Industries, an engineering company in Nashik, said they too had provided staying facilities to their workers at the company premises. “We have provided sanitizers, face masks and hand gloves to workers. We have also disinfected the company premises before starting production from Wednesday,” he said.
Large industries, especially in the city areas, are facing difficulty in arranging transport for their workers. “We have given a letter to the district collector to allow workers to reach industries by bikes or cars as it is not feasible for the industries to bring their workers at workplaces through buses,” said Tushar Chavan, secretary general, NIMA.
Industries in Kolhapur are in a fix over procuring raw material and selling finished goods during lockdown. “The industrialists are worried about how to tackle the situation and continue operations. Kolhapur MIDC produces spare parts required for vehicles and the agricultural implements. Most of the automobile industry is based in Pune, where the industries are still not operation,” said an industrialist based in Kolhapur.
Sanjay Shete, president of Kolhapur Chamber of Commerce, said there were questions about how industries would implement the strict rules and guidelines on the backdrop of coronavirus pandemic.