Visakhapatnam: Railway minister Suresh Prabhu and steel minister Chaudhary Birender Singh flagged off the Hazrat Nizamuddin–Visakhapat-nam Samta Express, the daily train now renamed as Vizag Steel Samta Express, at Nizamuddin station on Thursday.
The Vizag Steel Samta Express has been emblazoned with eye-catching Vizag Steel promotional visuals across its entire length. Visakhapatnam Steel Pl-ant has chosen Samta Express to promote its brand image.
Commending Vizag Steel for taking proactive steps to counter any adversary through effectively channelling its marketing efforts, Mr Birender Singh said undertaking such initiatives would not only help Vizag Steel extend its market reach to both urban and rural markets, but would also go a long way in increasing the nation’s per capita steel consumption from 61 kg to the global level of 208 kg, as envisaged by the Steel Ministry.
Vizag Steel is the brand name of the state owned Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) with an annual capacity of 6.3 Mt of long steel products for consumption by the domestic market.
It is one of the leading domestic long steel producers, supplying wire-rods, re-bars, structural, squares and rounds catering to construction and infrastructure sectors of economy.
Vizag Steel, known for its quality and operational efficiencies, is the first integrated steel plant to be certified for quality, health, safety and environment.
Mr Suresh Prabhu opined that other public sector enterprises should also avail the benefits of promoting their products through Indian Railways with a vast reach, unmatched to any other medium.
While welcoming the august gathering, RINL CMD P. Madhusudan said that steel and Indian Railways have a symbiotic relationship. Steel industry depends heavily on Railways for transportation of raw material and finished steel products and in turn steel plants supply material for tracks, rolling stocks, bridges, stations etc. RINL is also in the process of taking up manufacture of import substitution products for Railways in line with government’s initiative of “Make in India”.
