Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Wednesday, Sep 03, 2003
Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Wednesday, Sep 03, 2003 |
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Logistics
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Railways Konkan Rly `Adding Value to the Valley' Gaurav Raghuvanshi
New Delhi , Sept. 2 GIVE a man a fish, you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime. Konkan Railway Corporation seems to have taken this adage rather seriously. As it set out to construct part of the ambitious Kashmir railway project, the company has helped the local unemployed engineering graduates to form companies, and awarded contracts to these entities for the next five years. "We decided that instead of having outsiders go to the valley and work, we should employ local talent. That would help reduce the feeling of alienation and ensure that the locals get to associate with the prestigious project," the Konkan Railway Managing Director, Mr B. Rajaram, told Business Line. As part of the `Adding Value to the Valley' scheme, Konkan Railway has helped 144 unemployed graduate civil engineers to form 16 consulting firms. These engineers were chosen from over 400 applicants who responded to advertisements placed in local dailies. These local youth will be given on-the-job training while they work as supervising engineers for Konkan Railway. The company is executing the Katra-Qazigund section of the 340-km rail link which is expected to be completed by 2007. "We helped them form the companies; we got a Supreme Court lawyer to frame their Articles of Association and helped them with registration. Each company has nine shareholders, each of whom is a director on the board. They elect one managing director from among the directors and each company has a paid-up capital of Rs 1 lakh," Mr Rajaram said. The 16 newly formed consulting firms have already started working, conducting alignment surveys for the project. "This is for the first time that such ground details are being collected, which itself is a daunting task. No one has been able to collect the same in the last decade," he added. Konkan Railway has awarded contracts worth Rs 1.1 crore each to these firms. The contracts will last five years and, during this period, each director will take home about Rs 1.5 lakh per annum after paying for all the expenses of the company.
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