August 12 has proved to be a red letter day for Bhilai Steel Plant in more sense than one. Close on the heels of the launch of INS-Vikrant, India’s first indigenous Aircraft Carrier from the Kochi Shipyard fabricated largely from special steel plates rolled in Bhilai Steel Plant and other SAIl units, has come the announcement of the award of the Prime Minister’s Trophy for the best integrated steel plant in the country to Bhilai Steel Plant for the year 2011-12.
The plant has now been selected to receive this pinnacle recognition for a record 11 times since the award was instituted. The award that carries a cash reward of Rs 2 crore is given to integrated steel plants (ISPs) on the basis of evaluation by a Panel of Judges appointed every year. The Prime Minister’s Trophy is awarded to an ISP for their total performance in respect of objective parameters, enabling parameters, customer satisfaction index and observation by the panel of judges based on plant visits.
As the flagship plant of Maharatna company SAIl, Bhilai Steel Plant has been ahead of other steel plants in various parameters including productivity, profitability, quality, product development, systems, work culture, human resource development, application and deployment of IT-driven modern business tools, sustainability practices and corporate social responsibility.
Congratulating the Bhilai Steel Plant collective, CEO S Chandrasekaran described the achievement as an outcome of excellent team spirit in Bhilaians and the collective’s rare ability to be victorious in the face of any adversity. It may be recalled that apart from the PM’s Trophy that Bhilai has now won for the year 2011-12, BSP had won the first two PM’s Trophies for the Years 1992-93 and 93-94. The plant then made a hat-trick by winning the Trophy for the years 95-96, 96-97 and 97-98. The Plant again won the trophy for two consecutive years in 2003-04 and 2004-05. This feat was again repeated when Bhilai won the Trophy for years 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2009-10.