Protest staged against privatization of Nagaon, Cachar Paper Mills in Lakhimpur

A CORRESPONDENT

LAKHIMPUR: The Lakhimpur district units of All India Democratic Students' Organization (AIDSO), All India Democratic Youth Organization (AIDYO) and All India Mahila Sanskritik Sangathan (AIMSS) staged massive protest programme opposing the government's move taken towards privatizing the Cachar Paper Mill and Nagaon Paper Mill.

Notably, Cachar Paper Mill (CPM), situated by the side of the Barak River in Hailakandi district, is the only major industrial undertaking in south Assam and the adjoining States of Mizoram, Meghalaya and Tripura. Despite lack of infrastructural facilities in a remote location, CPM has a continuous record of steady improvement. During the year 2006-07, the mill recorded the highest annual production of 1,03,155 MT registering over 103 per cent capacity utilization, which was 100 per cent during the previous year. Similarly, the Nagaon Paper Mill (NPM), a unit of Hindustan Paper Corporation Limited, is situated on the National Highway 27 at Kagajnagar in Jagiroad. It is the first paper mill in the world to produce Kraft pulp in Kamyr Continuous Digester with 100 per cent bamboo as raw material. This paper mill produced 1,05,160 MT writing and printing paper during 2006-07 registering a capacity utilization of over 105 per cent, which was 106 per cent during the previous year. Despite such circumstances, these two paper mills will be e-auctioned as scrap on June 30. The organizations initiated the protest programme at Sukulibhoria near North Lakhimpur town. By showing placards, the members of the organizations opposed the privatization of the paper mills by pushing the employees to an uncertain future and demanded to rejuvenate the same at earliest.

Also Read: All Tiwa Students' Union demands steps for revival of Nagaon and Cachar Paper Mills