Thaindian News

Raipur, Jan 4 (IANS) The National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) has cut down iron ore transportation by 35 percent daily since Jan 1 as railway authorities have cancelled movement of goods trains during the night due to a shutdown call by Maoists in Chhattisgarh, a company official said Monday.
The disruption of rail services between NMDC’s Bailadila mining facilities in Dantewada district, some 380 km from state capital Raipur, and Andhra Pradesh’s port city Visakhapatnam has hit ore supplies to several domestic steel majors, including Essar Steel and Visakhapatnam Steel Plant.

“Some 35 percent of total daily dispatches of 56,000 tonnes from Kirandul and Bacheli mining facilities has been hit as rail rakes are not available since Jan 1 night,” NMDC general manger Subimal Bose told IANS.

He said a number of domestic customers were hit due to the supply cut and NMDC will make up the short supply once the iron ore shipments are restored.

Senior divisional commercial manager of East Coast Railway H.L. Luwang informed over phone from Visakhapatnam that goods train movements will be normal from Monday night.

Maoists, who claim to be fighting for the rights of poor peasants and landless labourers, routinely call shutdowns, attack government property and target local politicians and are highly active in and around NMDC’s mining facilities in Dantewada district.

In recent years, the insurgents carried out deadly attacks on security guards deployed at NMDC mining complexes in Chhattisgarh.