Union Petroleum and Natural Gas and Steel Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday wrote to Union Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Minister Ram Vilas Paswan urging him to cancel the proposed merger of the Central Warehouse Corporation’s (CWC) Bhubaneswar region with the Patna region.
The CWC Bhubaneswar regional office has 21 warehouses with operational capacity of 3.48 metric tonne under it and they are running at 90 per cent occupancy with consistent profitability. Ninety per cent of its staffs are Odias.
The CWC is playing a crucial role in storage and warehousing of various essential commodities, including food grains, which have provided crucial assistance during disaster relief situations in the State such as the recent cyclone Fani.
“In view of its importance, the CWC Bhubaneswar region should be not merged with the CWC Patna region due to geographical and administrative burdens. I request your personal intervention in directing concerned officials for calling off the merger,” urged Pradhan.