'Renault-Nissan unit will not be shut down': Thangam Thennarasu

Chennai: Industries Minister Thangam Thennarasu on Sunday said that the Renault Nissan plant in Oragadam near Chennai will not be shut down and there will be no cut in employment.

"To rationalize the production of cars according to market needs the car manufacturer had decided to reduce the production of Datsun type cars and instead focus on new varieties of cars. Despite the shortage of semiconductors across the globe Renault-Nissan had not cut short its car production and had assured that there will be no trouble in continuing the production in their Oragadam plant", said Thangam Thennarasu, in a statement.

The statement is a reply to the allegations of AIADMK Coordinator O Panneerselvam who, in a statement, claimed that Renault-Nissan is going to shut down its plant and there is a threat of the employees losing their jobs. The Minister said that unlike the AIADMK rule where Nokia shut down its plant and Kia motors moved to Andhra Pradesh, no such incidents will happen in the DMK rule.

"Due to the confidence that the industries have in Chief Minister MK Stalin the manufacturing continues unabated and a large number of companies are coming forward to invest in the state", said Thangam Thennarasu, who also said that the statement of Panneerselvam was intended only to tarnish the image of the state government and has no truth in it.

The Renault-Nissan plant was commissioned in Oragadam SIPCOT at an area of 610 acres in 2008 and the production commenced in the plant on January 1, 2010.