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Mukand to shut down Kurla plant

Our Bureau

MUMBAI, June 18

MUKAND Ltd has decided to close down its foundry unit at Kurla in Mumbai.

In a notice to the Bombay Stock Exchange, the company said it has ``effected a complete production cutback at the plant'' from June 16.

The company has already announced a voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) at the Kurla plant. The foundry's main products are cast steel bogies and couplers used as components for wagon by the Railways.

According to the company, the foundry's output accounts for only 7 per cent of the company's turnover. It is a separate undertaking and is in no way connected with the company's main business of manufacturing special and alloy steel equipment.

The total cutback in production and related activities at Kurla will help the company to improve its overall financial position, the company said in the notice to the stock exchange.

Company sources said the management had been planning to close down the plant for sometime now. The management had internally taken a decision over a year ago as the unit has beam making losses due to lack of orders, the source said.

A union official, however, said the management's plan is to develop and sell the 25-acre plot where the foundry unit is situated. The union official said the foundry unit is economically viable and alleged that the management was intentionally closing do wn the foundry.

There are around 1,200 employees at the plant and the management had recently offered them a VRS, which ``is not at all attractive'', the union official said.

The company has its heavy foundry division and alloy steel plant at its Kalwa plant near Thane.

Mukand has a joint venture steel unit with Kalyani group in Karnataka.

Pic.: A front view of the Mukand foundry unit.