The Indian Navy regrets to inform the loss of life of an individual, Makani Naveen Kumar, Seaman I, in what appears to be a case of suicide, onboard an Indian Naval Warship at Visakhapatnam today, 23 Aug 10. The 26 year old sailor is unmarried and hails from Visakhapatnam. The Navy has informed the local Police and has also ordered a Board of Inquiry to look into the cause of the incident.

Mr. S Machendranathan, Additional Secretary and Financial Advisor and Dr Dalip Singh, Joint Secretary in the ministry of Steel, who are on a visit to VSP complimented Mr. PK Bishnoi, CMD and VSP collective for its production performance of the existing operation units and progress of the 6.3 Million Tonnes Expansion Project.

Visteel Mahila Samithi in association with Visakhapatnam steel Plant constructed a Bore Well in the Zilla Parishad High School of Dharmarayudu Peta of Parawada Mandalam, Visakhapatnam.The Bore Well was inaugurated by Mrs. Hemalata Singh, wife of Dr Dalip Singh, Joint Secretary in Ministry of Steel, Government of India and Mrs. Anita Bishnoi, President of Visteel Mahila Samithi.People’s Representatives from Parawada, Members of Visteel Mahila Samithi, students and teachers of ZP High School participated in the inaugural function and expressed their gratitude to Mrs Anita Bishnoi for the help.Later Mrs. Hemalata Singh and Mrs. Anitha Bishnoi planted trees in the office premises of Visteel Mahila Samithi.

Mr. S Machendranathan, IAS, Additional Secretary and Financial Advisor and Dr Dalip Singh, IAS, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Steel, Govt. of India are visiting Visakhapatnam Steel Plant on Friday.

During their stay at VSP they would review and visit various units of ongoing expansion activities related to doubling the capacity to 6.3 million tonnes of Liquid Steel of VSP.

Vice Admiral Ganesh Mahadevan, AVSM VSM, Chief of Material, Integrated Headquarters, Ministry of Defence (Navy) arrived Visakhapatnam today, 17 Aug 10, on a two day visit to the Eastern Naval Command. The Flag Officer called on Vice Admiral Anup Singh, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief at Headquarters, Eastern Naval Command.
Later, the Admiral chaired the Mid Year Refit and Infrastructure Review 2010 held at Naval Dockyard (Visakhapatnam).The Conference is an apex body that formulates long term maintenance plan for all ships and submarines. Speaking on the occasion, the flag officer lauded the contribution of repair yards in enabling prolonged deployment of Indian Naval Ships away from our waters. He also emphasised the need for advance repair technology to economise on money and time. Admiral Mahadevan is also scheduled to visit various Naval organisations prior departure on Wednesday, 18 Aug 10.

We have taken a procession of about 60 senior citizens' on Visakhapatnam Beach Road from R.K. Beach to YMCA carrying the attached banner and beach walkers banner, NCSI etc. as part of SCONPD.  At the end Ex. Vice Chancellor AU Sri K.V. Ramana, Mrs. Swarna Kumari, Secretary Mahila Action and Secretary Beach Walkers Association Sri Sankarao etc. explained the hardships faced by Seniors and demanded speedy implementation of NPOP

RINL-VSP collective celebrated the 63rd Independence Day with traditional gaiety and patriotic fervor with salutation to the National Flag and March- past by CISF personnel of VSP and School Children from different schools in Ukkunagaram, the township of VSP.Mr. PK Bishnoi, CMD of RINL who was Chief Guest took the salute. Speaking on the occasion Mr. Bishnoi stated that it is our bounden duty to pay tribute to the great souls who sacrificed their lives for the nation’s independence because of whom we are breathing an air of freedom.Mr. Bishnoi complimented RINL-VSP’s collective for registerring its best ever gross sales turn over of Rs. 10635 crores despite many hurdles and the impact of the global financial crisis in 2009-10 and for VSP being adjudged again amongst the best companies to work for by the ‘Economic Times and Great Place to Work institute’ and for being awarded the first Steel Minister’s Trophy. Emphasizing the fact there is going to be stiff competition from producers in the private and secondary sectors which is to impact the bottom line of the company, Mr. Bishnoi asked the collective to focus on optimization of product and market mix, production at higher levels of efficiency and productivity with thrust on cost reduction. Early completion of the project expansion and production there from is the key tour success, he added.Mr. Bishnoi conveyed his sincere thanks and independence day greetings to  Government officials of Union Government of India, State Government of Andhra Pradesh, Indian Railways, Central Excise and Customs, Print and Electronic Media, CISF, School Children and their parents and teachers, Visteel Mahila Samithi, Customers and Suppliers who are partners in progress of the company .Mr. Bishnoi asserted that the world is ours provided ‘sincerity is our goal’, our minds are full of un- yielding determination’, ‘our hands are clasped together’ and ‘our resolve be to march together’.

On the occasion of Independence Day 2010, a Ceremonial Parade was held at the Eastern Naval Command parade ground, Naval Base here this morning. Vice Admiral Anup Singh, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command took the salute. Rear Admiral MT Moraes, Flag Officer Submarines was the Conducting Officer of the Parade. The Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief was given a ceremonial salute on arrival by the Parade Commander, Commander K Vijay Singh, Executive Officer, INS Airavat. He later inspected a 50 men Armed Guard and reviewed the platoons of Naval personnel drawn from various ships and establishments of the Eastern Naval Command. The Parade was attended by all Flag Officers, Commanding Officers of various ships and establishments at Visakhapatnam and a number of service and civilian personnel and their families. The Commander-in-Chief conveyed good wishes and greetings to all personnel on parade and to their families on the occasion of the 64th Independence Day. He complemented the men on Parade for their fine turn out and smart drill. Speaking on the occasion, Admiral Anup Singh said that the men in uniform should lead by example by being law abiding citizens of the nation first and repose the common mans faith about the Armed Forces being the bastion of discipline and alacrity. He urged one and all to be sincere to oneself, ones family and to the profession. As guardians of the nations expensive and irreplaceable infrastructure, he sought security consciousness permeating all activities, and intense vigilance in safeguarding our freedom, especially in the maritime domain. The Admiral reiterated his full trust in the diligence, integrity, professionalism and self-discipline of all members of the Eastern Naval Command. In a parallel Event at the Navy War Memorial on the Beach Road this morning, tributes were paid to Martyrs who made the supreme sacrifice in defence of the country. Vice Admiral Dinesh Prabhakar, Project Director, Ship Building Center placed a floral wreath and paid tributes. A two minute silence was observed as a mark of respect to the Martyrs.

The Eastern Naval Command Aquatic Championship being held at Command Swimming Pool by INS Circars under the aegis of Eastern Naval Command concluded today, 13 Aug 10. All ships and establishments of Eastern Naval Command including outstation units from Tamil Nadu took part in the Event held over five days commencing 09 Aug 10. The participants were grouped into six teams that competed across 22 disciplines including Diving and Water Polo, Commodore BA Thomas, Naval Officer-in-Charge (Andhra Pradesh) was the Chief Guest at the concluding Ceremony. Fleet A Team with 170 points won the Overall Championship. Fleet B was the runner-up with 144 points. The Water Polo Championship was won by Local Ashore Team. Sumesh Kumar LME, of Fleet A Team who won seven Gold Medals was adjudged the Best Swimmer of the Championship. Commodore Thomas gave away the prizes to the individual winners and trophies to the winning Teams.

Mr. PK Bisnoi, CMD of RINL asserted that India is the best place to build new steel plants with its rich and abundant iron ore reserves, low wage costs, sharply growing market, ideal location for exports which are stated to be the strategic advantages as enumerated by ‘World Steel Dynamics’.Mr. Bishnoi was delivering a key note address as Co-Chairman of The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) National Committee on Iron and steel on ‘Steel Industry-Changing Business Dynamics’ at the 4th India steel Summit-‘Achievement and Unfinished Agenda’ in New Delhi on Wednesday.Mr. Bishnoi has pointed out that though the modern era has witnessed many inventions and innovations, yet no material has replaced steel and steel continues to be the ‘unique metal for a variety of applications.World Steel industry recovered faster than expected from the global financial turmoil and the asian economies, particularly India and China have shown remarkable recovery.Mr. Bishnoi stated that China’s dominant position in the global steel capacity expansion is expected to decline over the next three years as it has already reached its pinnacle and India is expected to increase its share driven by infrastructure and manufacturing growth. He added that the infrastructure growth would spur concurrent growth in the transport and automobile sector, the power sector and manufacturing sector which would all boost consumption of steel.The ‘Business Confidence Survey’ conducted by ASSOCHAM on key business parameters such as ‘Economic climate’, Financial Climate’, and ‘Investment Climate’ has revealed that the country would witness a strong economic growth with domestic demand expected to be buoyant, resulting in higher capacity utilization rates and scaling of operations along with associated higher efficiency and profitability.Mr. Bishnoi concluded that the impact of India on the ‘Global Steel Market’ is going to be strong and with demographics of the country to be its advantage and called for chalking out strategies to optimize the value chain and value creation which are more important in today’s competitive market scenario.Honourable Union Minister of Steel, Mr. Virbhadra Singh, Honourable Minister of State for Steel, Mr. A Sai Prathap, Steel Secretary, Mr. Atul Chaturvedi, Mr. Sajjan Jindal of JSW Steel, Ms. Sminu Jindal and Mr. CS Verma, Chairman of SAIL were present.

The Forum for Women in Public Sector (WIPS) of VSP celebrated its 14th Formation day on Monday. Congratulating the achievements of women employees in Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, Mr. Y Manohar, Director (Personnel) of VSP, who was Chief Guest complimented WIPS-VSP and advised them to carry forward its glory in the years to come.Mrs. Malayavasini, Retired Professor and former Head of Telugu department of Andhra University who was Guest of honour appealed to the women employees to preserve our rich cultural heritage and complimented WIPS-VSP for its achievements.Mr. Umesh Chandra, Director (Operations), DR GBS Prasad, ED (Per& CSR), Mrs. Suprabha Menon, WIPS-VSP Coordinator, Senior Officials of VSP and all women employees participated.

Arogya Group of the Navy Wives Welfare Association (NWWA) and INHS Kalyani under the aegis of Eastern Naval Command organised an interactive session for the Naval community on various aspects of Breast Feeding, at Samudrika Naval Auditorium today, 09 Aug 10. Mrs. Nani Singh, President NWWA, Eastern Region was the Chief Guest on the occasion. Dr. K Radhakrishna, eminent Paediatrician and President, Indian Academy of Paediatrics, Andhra Pradesh Chapter, was the Guest of Honour. Speaking on the occasion, Dr Radhakrishna laid stress on the advantages of breastfeeding for babies such as better nutrition and protection against infection and allergies. He said that the mothers also benefit from faster uterine involution and are protected from cancer. Common queries and myths about breastfeeding were also addressed during the Session. Over 600 people benefited by the interaction that was put together under the stewardship the Arogya wing of NWWA Eastern Region.

A General Body Meeting of Veteran Sailors Forum (VSF), under the aegis of Headquarters, Eastern Naval Command, was conducted at Sailors Institute today, 08 Aug 10. Commodore HS Chopra, VSM, Chief Staff Officer (Personnel and Administration) President VSF chaired the meeting. Large number of retired sailors and widows of Naval personnel attended the Meeting. Speaking on the occasion, Commodore Chopra highlighted the various focus areas to the members on the welfare-related issues. The Meeting proved to be an ideal platform for sharing/ dissemination of information. The forum assured assistance to all needy and to involved in charitable and social causes.

Mr. PK Bishnoi, CMD of RINL inaugurated the Welfare Centre at Durgavanipalem of Pedagantyada Rehabilitation Colony on Saturday.Majority of Scheduled Caste Employees of Visakhapatnam Steel plant, who have been rehabilitated by Government of Andhra Pradesh during land acquisition for construction of the Steel Plant are residing at Durgavanipalem Rehabilitation Colony of Pedagantyada.RINL-VSP is taking up under its Corporate Social Responsibility, various Activities for welfare of people in Rehabilitation Colonies and surrounding villages.The ‘Scheduled Caste Nirvasithula Seva sangam’ of Durgavanipalem has requested VSP’s Management for providing a ‘Function hall’ for performing various functions and conducting meetings.RINL-VSP’s management had considered their request and accorded approval for construction of a Welfare Centre for the communities residing in the Rehabilitation Colony of Pedagantyada.The welfare centre facilitates could accommodate upto 500 guests for marriages, meetings and other functions. The work was executed at a cost of Rs. 50 lakhs.Mr. PK Bishnoi asserted that RINL-VSP would always be in the forefront for carrying out its CSR activities and that it would expand these as the plant expand andhoped that the people in and around Pedagantyada would fully utilize the provided facilities. Mr. Bishnoi was felicitated by local leaders on the occasion.Mr. P. Madhusudan, Director (Finance), Mr.GBS Prasad, ED (P&CSR), Mr.GV Arjuna Rao, DGM (F&A) and Managing Trustee (RINL-CSR Trust), Senior officials of VSP, Union Leaders and members of SC & ST Association and others from Pedagantyada have participated.

Air Marshal Anil Chopra, AVSM VM VSM, Senior Air Staff Officer, Headquarters, Southern Air Command arrived Visakhapatnam today, 03 Aug 10 on a days visit to the Command. On arrival the Air Marshal called on Vice Admiral Anup Singh, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief at Headquarters, Eastern Naval Command and held discussions with Rear Admiral Karambir Singh, Chief of Staff. He also attended a briefing on the role and functions of the Eastern Naval Command prior departure.

Responding to an appeal from the State Government of Orissa today, 07 Aug 10, the Indian Navy evacuated personnel stranded mid-river from Malkangiri District, over 110 kilometers North West of Visakhapatnam. Following a request from the District Collector, Malkangiri, a Seaking helicopter of the Eastern Naval Command, braving adverse weather conditions, airlifted early this morning, four personnel from a small island in the middle of river Kolab at Udaygiri village of Kartanapalli Gram Panchayat of Malkangiri District. The personnel were stranded for over three days on a rock of 3x4 feet dimensions and rescue by boat could not be effected by the State authorities as the river was in spate. All four personnel were winched up by a rescue hoist from 100 feet above ground as there was no place to land. They were given food and first aid and later dropped off at the CISF helipad at Malkangiri.

Air Marshal Anil Chopra, AVSM VM VSM, Senior Air Staff Officer, Headquarters, Southern Air Command arrived Visakhapatnam today, 03 Aug 10 on a days visit to the Command. On arrival the Air Marshal called on Vice Admiral Anup Singh, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief at Headquarters, Eastern Naval Command and held discussions with Rear Admiral Karambir Singh, Chief of Staff. He also attended a briefing on the role and functions of the Eastern Naval Command prior departure.

As a part of its Silver Jubilee year, a free Eye Screening Camp was organised by INS Kalinga, for neighbouring villagers above 40 years of age, on 31 Jul 10. The Camp was inaugurated by lighting of traditional lamp by Surgeon Commodore B Fanthome, Commanding Officer, Indian Naval Hospital Kalyani. The Camp witnessed enthusiastic participation from residents of Chapala Uppada, Chinna Uppada, Mangamaripeta and Puthuru. Naval personnel and families of INS Kalinga also participated in the event. Free spectacles were distributed during the camp. More than 250 villagers benefited from the free Eye Camp. Kalinga has been conducting a number of Socio-welfare activities including Medical Camps, Blood Donation Camps and Drawing Competitions to celebrate the Silver Jubilee Year.