KOTTAYAM Holding that the inauguration of the Kerala Paper Products Limited (KPPL) will set a new example before the nation, Industries Minister P. Rajeeve has said the unit would strive to function as a competitive and profitable public sector enterprise.
‘‘The conditions of service and wages will be determined considering the financial status and productivity of the company as well as the cost of living of the workers. The company management will be given the liberty to adopt creative measures to keep the productivity on a par with global standards. The government will intervene only in policy matters,’‘ he said in a statement on Wednesday.
According to him individual merit and performance will determine whether the workers will be retained or not while the management will function professionally. At the same time, the nature of work will be flexible so that it can be modified to suit the needs of the company at different stages.
``We can claim it as a successful alternative only if we manage to transform the KPPL into a competitive and productive enterprise without production barriers,'' he added.
Inauguration
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is slated to inaugurate the KPPL, which succeeds the erstwhile Hindustan Newsprint Limited, a Centrally owned public sector unit that became defunct three years ago, on Thursday.
The State government's aim, according to Mr. Rajeeve, is to develop the KPPL into a company that has a turnover of ₹3,000 crore with an annual production capacity of 5 lakh tonne. The government also expects the company to create 3,000 employment opportunities.
As the revamping works, which are being implemented in four phases, reach their final stage, the KPPL is expected to transform itself into a profitable company on a par with any other company in the paper industry.
It is for the first time in the history of the country's industrial history that a company that has been closed for more than three years is being reopened based on a long-term plan. To ensure uninterrupted supply of raw materials, the Ministers for Industries and Forests have already held a high-level meeting and procedures are on for allotting different types of timber for the estate previously owned by the Hindustan Newsprint Limited and the estate of the Forest department.
