Today, in a heartwarming post on X (formerly known as Twitter), Vedanta Resources Chairman Anil Agarwal shared the journey of starting the alumina refinery at Lanjigarh in the Kalahandi district of Odisha and how initially he was not sure about setting up the factory.
In the post, he wrote, “Ek samay tha jab Odisha rajya ke Kalahandi zile ko shayad hi koi janta tha (There was a time when there were hardly any people who knew about Kalahandi district of Odisha). Mujhe yaad hai (I remember), in 1985, when the then Prime Minister visited Kalahandi, he was very distressed at seeing the situation on ground and made his famous remark that out of every rupee that leaves Delhi, only fifteen paise reaches those who need it.
“Jab Biju Patnaik ji (Odisha Mukhya Mantri Naveen Patnaik ke pitaji) rajya ke CM the (when Biju Patnaik was CM of the state), he was determined to change the face of Kalahandi. He called me and said that something must be done. His vision was to set up an aluminium industry since the area was rich in resources, particularly bauxite,” he added.
He further shared that he was not confident about setting up any industry in Kalahandi but could not say no. “Sach batau, I wasn’t confident at all about setting up any industry in Kalahandi. But I could not walk away. I decided to visit Kalahandi.”
Recollecting the moment he reached Kalahandi, Agarwal shared that he could not believe that the local people barely had clothes to cover their bodies. They survived by consuming leaves and forest produce and had no connection with the world outside.
“This made me even more determined. Unfortunately, Indian investors did not want to commit to a place they regarded as remote and Naxal-infested. I did not lose hope. I met investors outside India and succeeded in raising 1 billion dollars,” he wrote.
“Kewal factory hi nahi (not just the factory), we had to build everything from scratch, rail, roads and airport. CM Naveen Patnaik laid the foundation stone for the world’s largest alumina refinery. We brought the world’s best technologies and talent. We employed 21,000 people. To maximise employment for locals, we rotated them in three shifts. You won’t believe me, many of these people saw Indian currency notes for the first time in their lives. Seeing the happiness on their faces motivates me to this day,” said the chairman.
He also shared that not everyone wanted the project to succeed, and even though they followed every regulation and every norm, a group of NGOs supported by the Church of England was determined to disrupt the project. The group went ahead and even influenced political parties to join them.
“The world doesn’t want India to become a producer. We spent our time battling vested interests instead of expanding the refinery. Even then, our efforts yielded results. Data for Kalahandi shows salaries paid to workers increased by 500%, industrial production increased by 400% and over 100 factories were set up,” he said.
Talking about the late Former president Abdul Kalam’s contribution to the project, Agarwal said, “We never let our shoulders drop. We got encouragement from none other than our late Rashtrapati Abdul Kalam ji. Jab unhone suna humari factory ke baare mein suna (when he heard about our factory), he visited Lanjigarh. He spoke to the local population and declared that an industrial revolution had transformed the face of Kalahandi.”
In the end, the businessman shared that he is determined to complete what they started in Kalahandi, and he believes in inclusive growth and its power to transform a place in one generation. He also invited investors to join the group in this journey.
“I invite investors to join us in this journey. Hamara sapna zaroor pura hoga. Kalahandi ek viksit or sabse shresht district ke roop me ubhar ke aayega (our dream will come true. Kalahandi will be the most developed district in the state),” he emphasised.
This alumina refinery in Kalahandi district, Odisha, was started more than 15 years ago by the Vedanta group in 2007.
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