Indus Valley Times

These will help boost public safety awareness and provide emergency support to local community

By Gourang Rout

Lanjigarh,Dec.18 :Vedanta Limited, Lanjigarh, India’s premier producer of metallurgical grade alumina,commissions a well-equipped Safety Training van and an Emergency Rescue van into its safety fleet. The vehicles were launched into service by Ms. P Anvesha Reddy, IAS, District Magistrate & Collector of Kalahandi, and Mr. Abhilash G, IPS, Superintendent of Police, Kalahandi District, in the presence of Mr. GG Pal, Dy. CEO, Alumina Business, Vedanta Limited. These two vehicles are the latest additions to the best-in-class systems on hand at the Vedanta Alumina refinery in Lanjigarh to strengthen safety awareness and emergency rescue efforts.

The Safety Training Van willbe used to provide on-the-go training to the company’s workforce through audio-visual mediums. With it, Vedanta’s safety team will also visit key locations within the local community with the goal ofspreadingfundamentalawarenesson fire, electrical, and domestic safety, etc. They will provide multi-lingual and detailed training materials for easier understanding and adoption of safety practices by the local public. Supplementing this effort, the Rescue van, christened Rescue Hawk,is an emergency rescue vehicle manned by a trained rescue squad equipped with essential tools, who would be readily available in the event of an emergency.

Both officials were very appreciative of the company’s proactive approach to building asafety-first culture at and around plant operations, which could have a positive impact on the wellbeing and safety consciousness of people within Kalahandi and adjoining areas.

Commenting on thelaunch of the vehicles, Mr GG Pal, Dy. CEO – Alumina Business, Vedanta Limited, said, “At Vedanta Lanjigarh, safety and wellbeing of our employees and business partners is of critical importance to us. Our efforts are directed at nurturing a safety-first culture, where every person working with us is sensitised about safety, to the extent where safety becomes a habit rather than a mandate. I thank Ms. P Anvesha Reddy and Mr. Abhilash G for launching our new Rescue Hawk and Safety Training van into action.Alongside our plant operations, they will also bededicated to improving the safety awareness in the community.”

Some of the company’s notable safety initiatives include:

• Suraksha Sankalp Diwas, which is an awareness campaign held on the 1^st of every month to spread safety awareness on specific themes across the work sites

• On-site Emergency Mock Drills organized in the presence of Directorate of Factories and Boilers, Govt. of Odisha, to assess agility and efficiency of the company’s processes and personnel under simulated scenarios

• Emergency support for the local community, such as the company’s recent success in preventing an LPG tanker spill on a public road from escalating into a bigger calamity

This relentless emphasis on establishing superior safety systems and practices have resulted in several industry recognitions, includingGold Award at the Kalinga Safety Excellence Award 2022 and Platinum Award at the Exceed Occupational Health and Safety Awards 2022.

Vedanta Aluminium, a business of Vedanta Limited, is India’s largest producer of aluminium, manufacturing half of India’s aluminium i.e., 2.26 million tonnes in FY22. It is a leader in value-added aluminium products that find critical applications in core industries. Vedanta Aluminium ranks 4th in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) 2021 world rankings for aluminium industry, a reflection of its sustainable development practices. The company operates a 2 MTPA (million tonnes per annum) capacity alumina refinery in Lanjigarh (Kalahandi district, Odisha), India since 2007 and an associated 75 MW captive power plant. With its world-class aluminium smelters, alumina refinery and power plants in India, the company fulfils its mission of spurring emerging applications of aluminium as the ‘Metal of the Future’ for a greener tomorrow.