The Business Bytes
TBB BUREAU
JHARSUGUDA, SEPT 21, 2023
Vedanta Aluminium, India’s largest producer of aluminium, recently conducted a comprehensive fire mock drill at the DAV School, Jharsuguda. The aim of the drill was to enhance the school’s fire emergency response capabilities and familiarize community members with fire mitigation methods towards effectively managing fire-related emergencies.
The mock drill drew active participation from over 1000 students, besides teachers and school administrators.
The event provided a comprehensive briefing on fire extinguishing equipment and safety protocols.
The mock drill commenced with a practical demonstration of fire extinguishers, followed by a simulated fire evacuation procedure, educating students about effective evacuation techniques.
Vedanta Aluminium frequently collaborates with community leaders, local organisations and government bodies such as the Directorate of Factories and Boilers, Government of Odisha, to raise awareness on safety practices. It has also deployed advanced Extended Reality (XR)-based technologies to provide immersive trainings to its employees, to closely simulate real-life scenarios and boost knowledge retention.
Previously, the company also inaugurated a Fire Safety Training Park at its operations in Jharsuguda, to help the company’s Industrial & Fire Safety teams facilitate live, practical safety demonstrations of fire hazards, their prevention and mitigation, to employees and business partners at the plant.
Speaking on Vedanta Aluminium’s safety-first culture, Vedanta Limited- Aluminium Business COO Sunil Gupta said, “At Vedanta, we are committed to the holistic development of the communities we serve. Therefore, our commitment to ensure safety and well-being extends beyond our operations to our community members as well. Through initiatives such as the fire mock drill, we aim to create a culture of safety awareness while empowering citizens, especially the youth, with the knowledge and skills needed to respond effectively to emergencies, thereby bolstering safety preparedness in the community as well.”
Speaking on the occasion, DAV School, Jharsuguda Principal PK Panda said “I express my gratitude to Vedanta for organizing this mock drill on such a large scale. The school’s safety team and the students feel confident and equipped with the required hands-on knowledge to effectively manage any unexpected fire related emergencies.”
This mock drill is just one of the many ways Vedanta Limited Jharsuguda is demonstrating its dedication in this area.
Some other notable safety inculcating practices by the company are: Sankalp — a Safety Culture Transformation Programme in progress across all of Vedanta Aluminium’s operations — which seeks to nurture an interdependent safety culture to instil a culture of safety in partnership with DuPont Sustainability Solutions; Visible Felt Leadership programme, as part of which the company’s leadership personally anchors safety quotients at site through regular employee engagement activities and audits of safety practices at shop floors; All-women fire-fighting team ‘Agnivahini’ at Jharsuguda who have been meticulously trained to act efficiently and effectively during emergencies, and is over 100 personnel strong at present; Robust safety experts who display advanced safety skillsets, knowledge, and attitude, thereby encouraging greater adherence to safety in the overall team structure; Safety Stand Down, an initiative wherein leadership teams engage with teams on maintaining a high degree of excellence in the areas of health, safety and environment; Extensive digitalization of operations and processes, helping Vedanta Aluminium minimize human interaction with machines, reducing chances for errors; Manufacturing Execution System that ensures 360-degree visibility of critical plant operations, allowing for remote decision-making through mobile applications; and Video analytics for immediate detection of fire events and monitoring of employee adherence to safety standards, ensuring continuous plant safety.
Vedanta Aluminium, a business of Vedanta Limited, is India’s largest producer of aluminium, manufacturing more than half of India’s aluminium i.e., 2.29 million tonnes in FY23. It is a leader in value-added aluminium products that find critical applications in core industries. Vedanta Aluminium ranks 2nd in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) 2022 world rankings for aluminium industry, a reflection of its sustainable development practices. 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.
