As part of his visit, Mr. Kumar made an extensive tour of the Plant to gain an overview of RSP’s operations, modernization initiatives and production facilities. The visit commenced with a briefing at the Model Room of the Learning & Development Centre, where Mr.  P. K. Sahoo, CGM (L&D), presented an overview of the Plant’s facilities, growth trajectory and future plans.

Subsequently, Mr. Kumar visited key operational units of the Plant, including the Raw Material Handling Plant (RMHP), Blast Furnace-5 (BF-5), Steel Melting Shop-II (SMS-II), and Hot Strip Mill-II (HSM-II). Mr. Biswaranjan Pallai, ED (Works), accompanied him during the Plant visit. During the tour, the CVO was received by respective CGMs and HODs of the Department. He interacted with senior officials and reviewed various operational and management practices being followed across the units.

Mr. Kumar also held discussions with the Chief General Managers of Blast Furnace and Hot Strip Mill-II at ‘Samagam’, Conference Hall of ED (Works) Secretariat, where issues related to operational excellence, system improvement and organizational effectiveness were deliberated upon.

During the day, the CVO interacted with officials from the Mines Department at Rourkela House and reviewed various aspects of mining operations and associated activities. He also held an interactive session with Young Managers, encouraging them to uphold the highest standards of integrity, transparency and professional excellence in their careers.

A special interaction programme with senior officers of the Plant, comprising Executive Directors and Chief General Managers was organized at the DIC Conference Hall, “Manthan”. ACVO, RSP and the team from Vigilance Deptt coordinated the entire visit.

SAIL Chairman and Managing Director Ashok Kumar Panda said SAIL will continue hiring at lower levels for expansion and operational requirements. SAIL has also launched a voluntary retirement scheme aimed at reducing employee numbers by another 500 to 1,000, Panda said

The steelmaker plans capital expenditure of about Rs 15,000 crore in FY27, up from around Rs 9,100 crore in FY26, as it expands plants at IISCO, Bokaro and Bhilai.

Panda said annual capital expenditure could rise further to Rs 20,000 crore-Rs 25,000 crore over the following years as expansion projects gather pace. The company said it will continue focusing on operational efficiency, cost reduction and higher capacity utilisation while managing future borrowing requirements.