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    JSW Steel’s Ballari site a Covid cluster, no entry till month-end

    Synopsis

    The restrictions will be in force till June 30. “We are working closely with the government and taken all precautionary steps,” JSW Steel deputy managing direct Vinod Nowal told ET.

    JSWAgencies
    Thousands of employees travel to the steel mill from neighbouring towns such as Ballari, Sandur and Hosapete.
    As the JSW Steel site in Ballari district emerged as a Covid-19 cluster surpassing Nanjangud in the number of positive cases, the district administration on Tuesday announced a slew of restrictions to control the spread there. The administration has barred movement of people from outside into the JSW plant from June 18.

    The restrictions will be in force till June 30. “We are working closely with the government and taken all precautionary steps,” JSW Steel deputy managing direct Vinod Nowal told ET. “As of today, there are about 117 active cases, and all of them are doing fine. Since we isolated the primary and secondary contacts as soon as the first case was detected, we hope things are under control,” he added.

    The district had 194 positive cases, including those related to the steel plant, as of Tuesday evening.

    The Covid cases have not, however, disrupted production at India’s largest steel mill of 12 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) capacity. The company has asked 11,000 of its 30,000 employees (both direct and indirect) to stay at home until further notice. “We have cut a shift, and are operating in two shifts. The production is expected to return to normal levels in a day,” Nowal said.

    The plant reported its first case two weeks ago after an employee, who returned to Ballari after dropping off his mother at Anekal, tested positive for Covid-19. Days before, his mother was found positive by the Tamil Nadu authorities at Salem.

    Industries principal secretary Gaurav Gupta, when contacted, said the government is clear that economic activities and industrial operations should go on. However, the industrial unit where Covid-19 cases have been found should comply with the measures notified by the health department. “We want industrial units to take all steps to prevent the spread of infection by adhering to the SOP,” he said.

    In Ballari, deputy commissioner SS Nakul asked the steel plant to house all employees required for operations within the 3,667-acre JSW township in Sandur taluk. He asked the company to select employees required for work at the plant after assessing their possible comorbidities. “Those living in the township shall only travel between the township and factory and not venture outside,” he said in an order. The company would provide food and other essentials to these employees.

    Thousands of employees travel to the steel mill from neighbouring towns such as Ballari, Sandur and Hosapete. Only those required for plant operations will be housed at the township. The district administration has also asked the company to test its employees and report all ILI/SARI cases from within the township.


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