While the retrenchment clause proposed by the IOC for taking over the unit has been severely opposed by the trade unions of HFC, it was learnt that the Swarups have developed a cold feet on a fertiliser project. IOC, which is a next door neighbour of the Haldia unit, was interested in taking over the unit for expanding its existing refinery of 4.7mt. However, the oil major is against taking over the 1,500 workers. Sources said that IOC offered to absorb only around 250 workers of HFC. "This proposal is certainly not acceptable. We do not want the plant at the cost of the workers. If the workers areleft jobless then what is the need for reviving the unit?," a trade union leader asked.

The sitting member of Parliament from Haldia and the chairman of Haldia Unnayan Parishad, Lakshman Seth, is taking a lot of initiative in working out a deal.

Sources added that the employees would accept a retrenchment at the unit, only if they were offered a lucrative VRS. "Time and again, HFC itself had offered VRS to its employees with funds from the National Renewal Fund but there were hardly any takers. So, we feel that instead of the existing norm of 45 days, IOC should offer a 60 days VRS scheme," the trade union leader said.The Swarups, who at one point of time were keen to take over the unit, is waiting for the Union cabinet to spell out its fertiliser policy.

"After the Swarups shelved their plan of setting up a greenfield urea plant at a cost of Rs 1,600 crore because of the Hanumantharao Committee recommendations, they were considering to take over this unit but then the government turned down thecommittee's recommendations," the sources said."Most of us in the industry are not sure whether the subsidies and the retention price of fertilisers will continue," an industry observer said. The Haldia unit HFC, which never produced a single tonne of urea or methanol, was the subject of at least 11 commissions. About five years back, two foreign companies -- Uhde GmbH of Germany and Toyo Engineering of Japan -- conducted a study and worked out a Rs 500-crore rehabilitation package.