MENACING PIRATE MOTHER VESSEL NEUTRALIZED BY INDIAN NAVY AND COAST GUARD

In a well coordinated and jointly conducted operation on 28 Jan 2011 the Indian Navy and the Coast Guard intercepted Prantalay a pirate mother vessel which was being used by Somali pirates since April 2010, for piracy at various locations in the Arabian Sea. This vessel has been a risk to international shipping for many months and has carried out several attacks. At about 1030h on 28 Jan 11, a Coast Guard Dornier while responding to a Mayday call from MV CMA CGM Verdi, a Bahama Flagged container ship, located two skiffs attempting a piracy attack. Seeing the aircraft, the skiffs immediately aborted their piracy attempt and dashed towards the mother vessel Prantalay which hurriedly hoisted the two skiffs onboard and set a Westerly course to escape from the area. This action cleared all doubts of Prantalay being used by pirates as a mother vessel. Whilst CG and IN Dorniers continuously tracked Prantalay, Indian Naval Ship Cankarso (a recently commissioned Water Jet Fast Attack Craft) which was already deployed in the area for anti piracy patrol, was directed to intercept and investigate Prantalay. At about 1700h on 28 Jan 11 INS Cankarso closed Prantalay and made all efforts to establish communication on the international Mercantile Marine Band, but the vessel did not respond and continued to proceed westwards in the hope of escaping. In keeping with internationally accepted norms, Cankarso fired a warning shot well ahead of the bows of Prantalay to compel her to stop. Instead of stopping, however, Prantalay suddenly opened fire on INS Cankarso. INS Cankarso returned limited fire in self defence out of necessity and as a proportionate measure only. Thereafter it was observed that a fire had broken out on Prantalay (mother vessels are known to carry additional fuel drums to fuel the skiffs). Personnel were also seen jumping overboard. INS Cankarso recovered 20 fishermen of Thai and Myanmarese nationality. These were the original crew of the fishing vessel and were being held hostage for several months. Prantalay is a Thai fishing vessel which had been hijacked by Somali pirates in April 2010 and has thereafter been used as ‘mother vessel’ for piracy operations. In addition to the fishermen, 15 pirates were also recovered, under humanitarian considerations. INS Cankarso was subsequently joined by INS Kalpeni and CGS Sankalp. Naval and Coast Guard ships and aircraft are presently in the area searching for any other fishermen/pirates. In addition to the anti-piracy patrols being sustained in the Gulf of Aden since Oct 2008, in view of the dangers from vessels such as Prantalay, the Indian Navy and the Coast Guard have been maintaining vigil West of the Lakshadweep Islands in the last two months. This has proved effective in keeping the international shipping lanes in this region safe from piracy attacks and piracy incidents in this area have seen a 75% decline since December 2010. South Eastern Arabian sea is a focal point of international traffic and the security of these sea lanes in the Arabian Sea is critical to the flow of global trade. The manner in which the firm and resolute actions by the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard were undertaken demonstrates the nation's determination to strengthen safety of merchant shipping in the international sea lanes in the Arabian Sea with due regard to international humanitarian law, even when dealing with a group of hardened pirates. It maybe recalled that recently Mr Hardeep Singh Puri, India's Ambassador to the UN, had presented a five point action plan to combat the menace of piracy, to the Security Council of the United Nations

Water Supply Unit for WRM-2 Commissioned

RINL achieved another with the inauguration of commissioning the ‘Water Supply Unit’ along with ‘Power Supply Station (3LBDS1)’ for New Wire Rod Mill (WRM-2) under the 6.3 MTPA Expansion Project in the plant by Sri PK Bishnoi, CMD, RINL/VSP in the presence of Sri Umesh Chandra, Director (Operations), Sri A P Choudhary, Director (Projects), Sri P Madhusudhan, Director (Finance), Sri TK Chand, Director (Commercial), Sri K Vidya Sagar, CVO. Sri. PK Bishnoi congratulated and complimented the project collective, consultant & executing agencies for commissioning of units ahead of requirement. He said that with the commissioning of this important system, the RINL will be able to start hot commissioning commencing with the light up of reheating furnaces of the new Wire Rod Mill shortly. He asked the project collective to plan for commissioning of more and more units in the coming two to three months. Sri Bishnoi said that RINL is all set to bring newer products of better quality & tolerances and expecting good benefits from the current booming market. He also asked to look in to aspects of cost reduction to the tune of 20% - 30% in the next phase of expansion. He specially complimented Sri. AP Choudhary, Director (Projects) for accepting the challenging tasks and completing the tasks in time. Sri AP Choudhary, Director (Projects) expressed confidence in Projects and Operations teams in commissioning of units one by one in two to three month as planned. He complimented M/s. MN Dastur & Co., the Principal Consultant and equipment supplier M/s.VATECH WABAG Ltd. Sri Umesh chandra, Director (Operations) complimented the Project collective and asked the works collective to gear up for taking up the new expansions units in to works fold. Water Supply Unit comprises of Pump Houses, Filtration Plant, Cooling Towers and Equipment with latest technology and is fully automated. “3LBDS-1” is a 11 KV substation supplies power to WRM-2 and its Auxiliary Units. Union Leaders Sri N Rama Rao, D Adinarayana and Sri Mantri Rajasekahr also spoke on this occasion. They complimented the project collective and assured to extend the full support for quick commissioning of other units.

SANKALP NAVY SCHOOL FOR SPEIAL CHILDREN CELEBRATES ANNUAL DAY

Sankalp, the Navy School for special children, run by Navy Wives Welfare Association (Eastern Region), celebrated its 21st Anniversary with gaiety and splendour at the Samudrika Naval Auditorium today, 31 Jan 11. Vice Admiral Anup Singh, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command was the Chief Guest on the Occasion, and Mrs. Nani Singh, President, Navy Wives Welfare Association (Eastern region) was the Guest of Honour. Other guests included parents, Senior Officers and ladies, as well as representatives from several Special Schools and Organisations from the City. The Principal, Mrs. Vimala Prasad presented the Annual Report highlighting the registration of the School with the Andhra Pradesh Disabled Welfare Department, apart from the various activities undertaken and facilities created during the year. The theme of the Annual Day, Navrasaas was depicted in the form of Shiv Taandav, a dance drama and Kalpana, a short skit followed by a musical ballet and a folk dance. Vice Admiral Anup Singh commended the efforts and congratulated the children and the staff on an enchanting performance. The Flag Officer cut the Anniversary cake along with the participants and gave away the prizes to children showing all round progress and also to the Most Motivated parents.

PASSING OUT PARADE AT SHIPWRIGHT SCHOOL

A Ceremonial Passing Out Parade was held at Shipwright School today, 28 Jan 11, on the occasion of passing out of the 02/2008 batch of Shipwright Apprentice Course from the School. Commodore PHM Salih of Ship Building Centre (Visakhapatnam) and the senior-most Naval Architect Officer of the Command was the Chief Guest on the Occasion. He reviewed the Parade and presented the Trophy for the First in Overall Order of Merit to Ayoush Kumar Shipwright Apprentice. Best in Parade was awarded to Sumit Kumar Shipwright Apprentice. In the course of the preceding 117 weeks, the Apprentices trained at the Shipwright School in various facets of Naval Architecture, Ship Building and Ship Maintenance. In addition, the officers also carried out project studies on live design issues. Apart from professional training, they were also exposed to associated facets of Naval life including small arms firing, Drill, Sports and adventure activities. A valedictory function was also held on Thursday, 27 Jan 11, that culminated in a scintillating cultural programme presented by the trainee Shipwright Artificers and other talented members of the Shipwright School. Commodore AK Dutta NM, Principal Director Naval Architecture, Integrated headquarters, Ministry of Defence (Navy) was the Chief Guest for the valedictory function.

NAVY CHILDREN SCHOOL CELEBRATES ITS ANNIVERSARY

The Primary Wing of Navy Children School (Nausena Baugh) celebrated its 35th Annual Day on Thursday, 27 Jan 11 at the Samudrika Naval Auditorium. Christened Confluence 2011, the presentation was a cornucopia of vibrancy and pageantry. Earlier in her report, the Principal Ms. Nikita Tomar Mann highlighted the accomplishments of the School, both in scholastic and co-scholastic avenues. She envisaged a collaborative and synergetic approach between the School, Parent and the Pupil in bringing about optimal holistic growth of the wards. Guest of Honour, Mrs Nani Singh, President, Navy Wives Welfare Association (Eastern Region) gave away trophies to academic toppers and all-rounders. The Chief Guest Vice Admiral Anup Singh, PVSM, AVSM, NM, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command commended the award winners on their achievements and the participants on their engaging performance and exhorted others use the accolades as incentive to strive harder and achieve what their peers had through unstinting effort. Navy Children School Management Committee members, dignitaries of Eastern Naval Command and parents were also present on the occasion.

REPUBLIC DAY PARADE HELD AT NAVAL BASE

On the occasion of Republic Day 2011, a Ceremonial Parade was held at the Eastern Naval Command parade ground here this morning. Vice Admiral Anup Singh, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command reviewed the Parade. Vice Admiral Dinesh Prabhakar, Project Director, Ship Building Center (Visakhapatnam) was the Conducting Officer of the Parade. The Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief was given a ceremonial salute by Commander VS Prabhakar, the Parade Commander on arrival. He later inspected a 50 men Armed Guard and reviewed the Parade comprising 24 platoons including six Armed platoons of Naval personnel drawn from various ships and establishments of the Eastern Naval Command. Addressing the gathering in attendance, the Commander-in-Chief greeted all present on the occasion of the 62nd Republic Day, and complimented the men on parade on their smart turn out and Drill. He spoke of how the democratic credentials of our country have grown from strength to strength since becoming a republic in 1950 by the sacrifices of countless Indians, and how we are frequently heralded as the worlds largest democracy and as a symbol for many nations who aspire to have the political freedom that we enjoy as a true democracy. He also stressed on the responsibility, firstly as citizens of this great country, but more importantly as fighting sailors of the Indian Navy to safeguard the ideals that our forefathers died for and urged all to remind themselves that they are duty-bound to protect the values of our republic from all aggression. The Admiral stressed that Patriotism lies not only in gladly laying down ones life for the country but, also lies in seemingly small things one can do to make the country a better place to live in and to make one prouder of being an Indian. He said that the government is doing its bit, and urged all do theirs. Whatever needs to be done to take our country forward is to be done by all of us and our bright children, the India of tomorrow, he said. Admiral Anup Singh reiterated his full trust in the diligence, integrity, professionalism and integrity of all hands of the Eastern Naval Command. He expressed certainty that together we will keep the White Ensign flying high and live up to the expectations of our country. The Parade was attended by all Flag Officers, Commanding Officers of various ships and establishments at Visakhapatnam, and a large number of service and civilian personnel and their famili.

REAR ADMIRAL BISHT TAKES OVER AS EASTERN FLEET COMMANDER

After a successful tenure at the helm, Rear Admiral P Murugesan handed over the command of the Eastern Fleet, the sword arm of the Eastern Naval Command to Rear Admiral HCS Bisht. The change of guard took place at an impressive ceremony held today, 24 Jan 11 onboard the Flag ship INS Ranjit. Commissioned in the Indian Navy on 01 Jul 1979, Rear Admiral Bisht is a specialist in Surface Warfare. He is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakvasla and the Naval Academy, Kochi. A graduate of the 1992 batch of the Royal Defence College, Greenwich (UK), he also attended the Naval High Command Course at College of Naval Warfare at Karanja, Mumbai and the 47th Naval Defence College Course at New Delhi. He has held various prestigious operational and staff appointments both, afloat and ashore. In his earlier appointment at Visakhapatnam he was the Fleet Gunnery Officer of the Eastern Fleet. He has had the privilege of commissioning the Missile Corvette INS Kora as Commanding Officer and also commanded the Stealth Frigate INS Tabar. His key staff appointments include Deputy Director Naval Plans and Director Naval Intelligence at Integrated Headquarters, Ministry of Defence(Navy), New Delhi and as Defence Attache at the High Commission of India at Singapore. Rear Admiral Bisht was promoted to Flag rank on 28 Jan 08 and assumed charge as the Assistant Controller Aircraft Carrier Project at Integrated Headquarters, Ministry of Defence(Navy), New Delhi. Prior taking over the Eastern Fleet, the Flag Officer served as the Chief of Staff, Southern Naval Command and later as the Flag Officer Sea Training at Kochi. The outgoing Commander of the Eastern Fleet, Rear Admiral Murugesan will proceed New Delhi to assume charge as the Assistant Chief of Naval Staff ( Foreign Cooperation Intelligence) at the Integrated Headquarters, Ministry of Defence (Navy).

Mayor addressing on Beach safety meeting.

"MOTHER EXPRESS"

An exhibition on Wheels Train run by Indian Railways exhibiting the life and philanthropic deeds of Mother Teresa on the occasion of her birth centenary, chug Visakhapatnam Railway Station on January 20. The train has three air-conditioned coaches, which have photographs and write-ups on the life and message of Mother Teresa in association with the Missionaries of Charity. It is stated that, Mother Teresa was a Catholic nun who founded the Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata. She worked tirelessly in the service of the poor, sick, orphaned and destitute for over 47 years.
Around 10 thousand visitors including school children comprising of 29 schools visited the Exhibition on Wheels “Mother Express” at Visakhapatnam Railway station. Particularly, the school children took keen interest while moving inside the exhibition compartment and appreciated the various works done by Mother Teresa to the humanity.

DR. PALLAM RAJU INAUGURATES GOLDEN JUBILEE FESTIVITIES AT SAINIK SCHOOL KORUKONDA

Honorable Raksha Rajya Mantri, Dr. MM Pallam Raju laid the foundation stone to a Sports Complex at Sainik School Korukonda today, 20 Jan 11. The Indoor Sports Complex is being constructed under the aegis of the alumni body Association Saikorian, to mark the Diamond jubilee year of the School. The ceremony held to mark the entry of the school into its fiftieth year also had the honourable minister releasing the Golden Jubilee souvenir, unveiling the Commemorative Plaque and also flagging in a bicycle rally that had set off earlier from Visakhapatnam. The Event was graced by Vice Admiral Anup Singh, AVSM, NM, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval command and Chairman, Local Board of Administration and Shri Ashok Gajapathi Raju, MLA, Vizianagaram constituency. Several members of staff and ex-students from all walks of life, including serving and retired senior officers from the Armed Forces were also present on the occasion. Earlier in the day, a group of 50 students, past and present, set off for the School on bicycles from Naval Coast Battery at Visakhapatnam, to ring in the plethora of activities that are scheduled to be held all the year round. The rally was flagged off by Lieutenant General K Surendranath, VSM, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Army Training Command (ARTRAC) and the senior-most serving officer of the Saikor fraternity. Lieutenant General (Retired) KR Rao, PVSM, AVSM, VSM, Chairman, Golden Jubilee Celebrations Committee and other ex-students and family members also took part in the Event.

Mayor & Corporators of GVMC welcome the Dist. Incharge Minister Vatti Vasantha Kumar on his visit to Visakhapatnam on Thursday

Mayor inspecting 50th ward Gangavaram

Commissioner addressing a training session to the employees

Commissioner reviewing on Rachabanda programme

GOLDEN JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS OF SAINIK SCHOOL KORUKONDA SET TO COMMENCE

Sainik School Korukonda enters the Golden Jubilee year marking 50 years of its existence on Tuesday, 18 Jan 2011. A host of activities are planned to be conducted all year round to commemorate the Occasion, culminating in a grand finale at the School on 18 Jan 2012. These include Tree Plantation, Sailing, White Water Rafting, a sponsored trip for select children from the school to Srinagar, Motor Arcade and Paragliding displays at Hyderabad, Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam. As a part of these events, a cycle rally is scheduled to be flagged off from the Naval Coast Battery on 20 Jan 2011, by Lieutenant General K Surendranath, VSM, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Army Training Command (ARTRAC), and the senior most serving officer from the Saikor fraternity. The day will also mark the laying of foundation stone by Honourable Minister of State for Defence, Shri MM Pallam Raju, to the Indoor Sports Complex, being built on the School premises under the aegis of ‘Association Saikorian’ of ex-students. Dr. (Smt) Botsa Jhansi Lakshmi, Honourable Member of Parliament and Shri Ashok Gajapathi Raju, MLA, Vizianagaram constituency will also grace the Event. Sainik School, Korukonda, also known as SSK (with the students fondly called ‘Saikorians’) is one of the 24 Sainik Schools started in the sixties by the then Prime Minister, Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru and then Defence Minister Krishna Menon, with a view to establishing a supply chain of good cadets from across the country for the Armed Forces. Shri PVG Raju, then Raja Saheb of Vizianagaram, had donated 206 acres of land enclosing a historic Palace for the premises. The School was formally inaugurated on 18 Jan 1962, with the founder Principal Commander T De Almeida at the helm. Todate, SSK has produced over 5,000 alumni over the fifty years of its existence, many of them spread across the world straddling different spheres of influence, from the Armed Forces, the IAS and the IPS to Doctors, Engineers, IT professionals, Educators and Entrepreneurs in various fields, making the SSK a vision fulfilled.

Inauguration of LD Converter Tilting & LD Gas Chamber filling in SMS-II

Sri Swashpawan Singh, IFS, Independent Director, RINL inaugurated Pneumatic tilt drive system of LD Converter-1 and Sri H.S. Chahar, IAS, Independent Director, RINL, switched on the filling of LD Gasholder which is the final stage of Gas Holder installation in Steel Melt Shop-2 of 6.3 MTPA expansion project. Sri Swaspawan Singh and Sri HS Chahar complemented the RINL collective for achieving these two mile stones. They congratulated the project personnel and suppliers for completion of jobs. Sri PK Bishnoi, CMD, RINL congratulated the project collective for completing the jobs and starting the implimentation of the commissioning activities. On this occasion, Sri. AP Chowdhary, Director (Projects) mentioned that tilting of Converter to blowing position a major event in commissioning the SMS-2 and also the Gas Holder will be ready for taking gas from news SMS-2. Director (Projects) congratulated SMS Construction, Dastur Co, SMS-SIEMAG consortium partners and the GACL(MICCO) Consortium partners for achieving these milestones. Senior officials of VSP, Dastur Co, M/s GACL and M/s MBL were present on this occasion. Sri P Madhusudan, Director (Finance) has mentioned that, with these commissioning activities, works worth Rs 8500 Crs were completed.

LD Converter:
The Converter was tilted to blowing position soon after commissioning the tilt drive system. Mr. Fred Freiberg, General Site Manager, SMS-SIEMAG, explained that, as per the procedure, LD converters are erected in invert position and after completion of the erection & alignment of the vessel, Converter is tilted to blowing / operating position for further works like relining, shield fixing etc. Design, engineering, supply, erection and commissioning of 2 nos. LD converters have been ordered on the consortium of M/s SMS SEIMAG, Germany, M/s SMS India Private Limited, Gurgaon, M/s Bridge & Roof Co. Ltd, Kolkata and M/s BHEL, Bangalore. Senior officials of VSP, Dastur Co, M/s SMS-SIEMAG and M/s. Bridge & Roof Co. Ltd were present on this occasion.

LD Gas Holder :
The Gasholder is a huge structural tank with an approximate diameter of 54 mt and 52 mt height, having a floating piston arrangement, having a capacity of 80,000 cum. The Gasholder is utilized for holding the LD gas i.e. the gas generated during steel making process containing mostly Carbon monoxide with high calorific value, for further utilization in reheating furnaces in Mills, thus resulting in huge savings and avoiding environmental pollution. Design, engineering, supply, erection, testing and commissioning of the Gasholder has been ordered on the consortium of M/s Gillanders Arbuthnot Co Ltd (MICCO) and M/s Mothewell Bridge Ltd, UK. Standing Leak Test is conducted to ensure the structural integrity and gas tightness of the Seal in the Gasholder.

OFFICERS OF ARMY WAR COLLEGE AT ENC

Eighty three officers of the Army War College, undergoing 39th Higher Command Course, led by Lieutenant General Deepak Raj, AVSM, SM, Commandant, Army War College arrived Visakhapatnam on Friday, 14 Jan 11, on a two day visit to the Eastern Naval Command. During their stay here, they are scheduled to attend a briefing on the role and functions of the Eastern Naval Command and later visit the Naval Dockyard and Ship Handling Simulator at Maritime Warfare Center (Visakhapatnam). They will also visit Kursura museum prior departure.

RINL AND RAILWAYS INK MOU TO SET UP AXLE PLANT IN WEST BENGAL

Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited - Visakhapatnam Steel Plant has signed MOU with the Indian Railways on today (10.1.2011) for setting up a AXLE PLANT named as "Uttarbanga RINL RAIL Karkahana Limited" at New Jalpaiguri, West Bengal at an estimated cost of Rs.278 crores for manufacturing and supplying Rail Axels for BOX N wagons and others to meet the growing requirement of Indian Railways. The project shall be effected through RINL by forming a 100% subsidiary company of RINL or a JV. MECON has been appointed as a Consultant for this project. Railways have selected RINL to set up the state of the art Axle Plant considering its technological strengths in special grades of steel for decades. RINL is known for having modern technology and now also adopting latest technology like RH process, LHF, EMS etc., for production of high quality cleaner steel in its on going expansion. Speaking on this occasion, Sri Sanjeev Handa, Member Mechanical, Railway Board lauded the keen interest evinced by RINL particularly by Sri PK Bishnoi, CMD, RINL. He said that Railway Board members are fully convinced with the assurance of RINL on quality aspect and he observed that signing of MOU is only a beginning and this will pave way for many more things. He said that he and other members off the board elated with the proposed project. Sri PK Misra, Secretary Steel termed this MOU as a noble gesture by Railways. He said that country is poised for growth and such projects will further strengthen the pace of growth. He advised RINL to expedite the project quickly to reap the benefits fully. Sri Bishnoi, CMD thanked the Ministry of Steel and Railways for their initiative and support in this strategic move to set up the Axel plant. The MOU was signed at Rail Bhavan in New Delhi in the august presence of Sri PK Misra, Secretary (Steel), MOS, Member Mechanical, Member Engineering, Member Electrical and other board members off the Railway Board. Sri PK Bishnoi, CMD, RINL and Sri. Handa, Member Mechanical, Railway Board exchanged the MOUs. Sri Machendranathan, Addl. Secretary and Financial Advisor (AS&FA), MOS, Dr Dalip Singh, Joint Secretary, Steel and Sri AK Ghosh, CMD, Mecon. Sri A P Choudhary, Director (Projects), Sri P Madusudhan, Director (Finance), RINL and senior officials from Railway Board and RINL present on the occasion. The Axel Plant will produce Box N Wagon Axle – for Axel load of 22.9 t currently with a provision for Axel load of 25 T with 210 mm dia of 516 kg weight for 22.9 t Axel load. The new plant will have the facility of forging and heat treatment of about 50,000 nos forged axles/per year.

Horticulture Show - 2011 at RINL

Sri P K Bishnoi, CMD, RINL, VSP has inaugurated the ‘Horticulture Show - 2011‘ today at Dr. B R Ambedkar Kalakshetram(CWC-1), Ukkuangaram. Competetions have been conducted in various categories of exhibits viz. Ornamental, Kitchen Garden, etc., Speaking on this occasion Sri. Bishnoi congratulated all the winners. He said that the house-wifes should be encouraged to grow more and more kitchen gardens, children also should be involved in this activity for greener and healthier environment. He advised to extend necessary training to all residents of township to further improve greenery in Ukkunagaram. Prizes were were distributed to the winners of various categories by Sri. Umesh Chandra, Director (O), Sri.AP Chowdhary, Director (Proj.) and Sri. P. Madhusudana Rao, Director (F). S/Sri. Tagore, D.Adinarayana, Ayodhyaram, Gandham Venkatarao and Maturi Srinivasarao have also gave away the prizes to the winners. Mr. M. Appalanaidu has been declared as overall champion by winning 11 prizes in various categories. The Show was attended by number of people from in and around township.The Show is open for public for two days.

PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE ON INDUSTRY REVIEWED PERFORMANCE OF RINL, DCI,HSL & FSNL

Department-Related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Industry under the Chairmanship of Sri. Tiruchi Siva, Hon’ble Member of Parliament (Rajyasabha), visited Visakhapatnam during 4th & 5th January, 2011, and had interactions with top management of Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL), Dredging Corporation of India (DCI) Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL) and Ferro Scrap Nigam Limited (FSNL). Hon’ble MPs from both Rajya Sabha & Lok Sabha were present during the meeting namely S/Sri Nandamuri Hari Krishna, Goraknath Pandey, KB Shanappa, Ijyaraj Singh, Ram Singh Kaswan, Ashk Ali Tak, SP Singh Baghel, NSV Chitthan, M Krishnaswamy, Natuji Halaji Thakor, Raju Shetti, Kishanbahi V Patel . Shri. PK BIshnoi, CMD,RINL, Capt. SS Tripathi, CMD, DCI, Sri. Ashok Kumar, Director (ES)-Ministry of Defence, HSL, and Sri. Antony Chacko, MD, FSNL have made comprehensive presentation elaborating the respective Company’s performance and help required from the Government. The Members of Committee have gone through the presentations made by the four PSEs to evaluate their performances and will submit a report to Government of India along with their recommendations for further improvement.

NATIONAL MARITIME FOUNDATION SEMINAR VISAKHAPATNAM REGIONAL CHAPTER HELD AT ENC

A one day National Maritime Foundation Seminar of Visakhapatnam Regional Chapter was held by the Eastern Naval Command today, 03 Jan 11 at Meghadri Naval auditorium, with the intention of providing a platform for understanding the maritime history, heritage and culture of the East Coast and especially the state of Andhra Pradesh. Professor A Prasanna Kumar, Director NMF, Visakhapatnam Region welcomed the participants. Vice Admiral Anup Singh, AVSM, NM, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command inaugurated the seminar. Professor Ranabir Chakravarti, JNU, New Delhi; Professor V Ramakrishna, President AP History Congress, Retd Professor of History, Central University Hyderabad; Professor C Somasundara Rao, President Epigraphical Society of India and Retd Professor of History, Andhra University; Professor Mrs Krishna Kumari, Dean Faculty of Arts and Head of the Department of History and Archaeology, Andhra University; Professor P Vijayaprakash and Professor of Anthropology, Former Registrar Andhra University presented papers on related issues. The seminar was an effort towards synergising focus in maritime historical research highlighting the rich heritage and culture of the state of Andhra Pradesh in particular and of the East Coast, in general. The speakers drove home the point that no nation that aspires for greatness can neglect the maritime dimension and reiterated the unlimited opportunities that are available to us in the maritime domain.

FAMILIES DAY AT SEA

The Families Day at Sea for the families of Naval personnel of Eastern Naval Command was conducted on 02 Jan 11 by Eastern Fleet under the stewardship of Rear Admiral P Murugesan, VSM, Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet. The Fleet of eighteen warships of Eastern Fleet displayed their maritime prowess through various man oeuvres and evolutions. The day started with Naval ship casting off before dawn and entering expanse of Bay of Bengal. The various evolution involved included Search and Rescue, Anti submarine warfare, submarine demo, missile firing by naval ship and Close Range Anti Aircraft (CRAA) firing. This event was followed by jackstay, a seamanship evolution carried out in very close proximity to enable transfer of stores from one ship to another while moving through the water. The event concluded with the Fly-Past by Naval Aircraft over the Fleet Ships. In this once a year event, the families had an opportunity to catch a glimpse of many Naval operations at which the officers and sailors of the ships are involved throughout the year.

STRICT ADHERENCE TO SAFETY IS NEED OF HOUR: SRI BISHNOI

Sri P K Bishnoi, CMD, RINL, Visakhapatnam Steel Plant stressed the enormous need to enforce safety and see accidents do not occur in the plant to achieve safe operational performance. We should aim for "Zero" occurrence of accidents and he advised the employees for strict adherence to the safety norms. While addressing a large gathering of Senior officers, Leaders of all trade unions, Steel Executive’s Association, Women in Public Sector (WIPS) and SC&ST Association on the occasion of New Year in VSP today, Sri Bishnoi outlines his priorities to face the challenges ahead for VSP in the coming years. He lays emphasis on Research & Development for sustenance growth and prosperity of the organisation like ours to be more competitive and quality oriented and to produce steel at international standards. The other area of concern is raw material security for VSP for which sincere efforts are being undertaken to get iron ore mines in various states including Jharkhand, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh. Sri Bishnoi said that there is every need for RINL to spread geographically being a national company. He expressed the hope that these crisis’s will be overcome with dedication and devoted efforts of all employees in VSP. He said major task before everyone is to commission the expansion units in time and to avoid cost escalation. Sri Bishnoi complimented all the Directors of the Company and CVO for their and their team’s contribution in taking the plant to newer heights. Sri Umesh Chandra, Director (Operations) called for operational efficiency and improvement of productivity to achieve excellence in steel production. Cooperation, team spirit and confidence building among employees only helps the organisation to grow in future. VSP employees have more expertise when compared to other steel plants in the country, he said. Sri A P Choudhary, Director (Projects) appreciated the employees determination and dedication which contributed for getting Navratna status on VSP. Faster commissioning and stabilisation of expansion units is a major challenge before all, he said. Sri Choudhary said that major works of the expansion is almost completed and completion of Wire Rod Mill followed by other units are on anvil. Sri P Madhusudhan, Director (Finance) said that 2010 is an eventful and tough year in terms of performance and productivity. Sustaining the present growth is a great challenge before VSP, he said and added that implementation of Enterprise Resource Management (ERP) in VSP is in advanced stage and shortly will be completed in couple of months. We should look for savings and cut in expenditure in view of the massive expansion of the plant. Sri T K Chand, Director (Commercial) said that raising input costs in iron ore and coking coal is a major challenge for VSP for the next two years which effecting the bottom-line of the organisation. He said that VSP is making all out efforts to penetrate more deeper into the rural market and also finding new and niche markets in the country. Sri Y R Reddy, Director (Personnel) called upon the employees to develop self discipline and best working practices to achieve global standards. It is the people to make or mar the image of the organisation. Sri K Vidyasagar, IAS, CVO said that Vigilance department is continuing its efforts to curb corruption and enhancing transparency in administration and upgrading the manuals and procedures in the organisation, as a preventive vigilance measure. Earlier Corporate Strategic Management (CSM) Department has made detailed presentation on the RINL’s achievements during the year 2010 and tasks ahead in 2011 for the company. Earlier Sri Bishnoi and other Directors released VSP’s calendar 2011 brought out by the Corporate Communications Department. Large number of senior officials, union leaders, representatives of SEA, SC/ST Organisation attended .