Nagpur: Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari claimed on Sunday that his family concern has been able to make ‘crude-petrol’ out of plastic waste, and a plant for the same would be ready in a month. “I am insisting that those who have harvesters use this fuel instead of diesel, and trucks can use it up to 50%,” he said. He was speaking at the Late Mohan Dhariya award ceremony organized by NGO Vanrai on Sunday.
“I keep experimenting, it doesn’t matter if an idea ends up losing Rs10 to 20 crore. As much as 16 lakh tonne garbage is lying in NMC landfills. I took 150 tonne garbage to Wardha and burnt it in the boiler. The trial has been successful so far. Once it comes through, I can use 2,000 tonnes of garbage from the city,” said Gadkari.
Earlier, speaking at a function by the Sonar Sanstha, an association of goldsmiths and artisans, Gadkari said that after all these years he would finally get a ₹30 crore profit from his sugar business due to ethanol.
Gadkari also announced he is coordinating with Rakesh Rokde, chairman of Sonar Sanstha, to get a plot in Mihan-SEZ for an ornament hub. “Goldsmiths from all over Nagpur and even other cities in Maharashtra can set up businesses here, and earn in dollars by exporting jewellery,” he said. “My aim is to develop Nagpur as a manufacturing hub for gold manufacturing. Though I am no longer the MSME minister, but I would certainly extend all the help for the venture,” said Gadkari.
The minister has regularly spoken about his business activities. In earlier speeches, the member of parliament from Nagpur had pegged the turnover at Rs1,100 and later Rs1,300 crore, calling it a business run by his sons.
He also said that it was after his suggestion that Mahindra and Mahindra came up with the new SUV version of Thar. “The company’s owner had met me lately, I told him that apart from being cost centric the company should also have quality centric approach. It was after my advice that Mahindra and Mahindra acquired a design company in Italy and came up with the new model, for which there is a long waiting list now.” He also recalled strictly warning the Mahindra managing director when he was reluctant to shift to Euro VI norms from Euro IV.
He added, “Even the Tata MD met me recently. The company has begun making electric buses again, for which there is a long waiting list.”
On the Surjagarh project at Gadchiroli. Gadkari said the iron ore mine has also led to Naxal cadre quitting arms and starting work in the mines.
The minister said he had initiated the Mihan project and expected it would generate one lakh jobs. Today, as many as 88,000 jobs have been created. TCS would be employing 12,000 persons, with the inauguration planned next month. HCL has so far employed 7,000 persons, and another company Tech Mahindra is also coming up fast, he said.
