Awaken your conscience, and let your mind become subordinate to it – Kamal Sarda
Shri Kamal Sarda has been at the helm of Chhattisgarh’s largest business group. From its humble beginnings in 1978 Sarda group has been responsible for India’s first few sponge iron plants and now is one of the major steel producers of the country with total integration. From practising Modern Agriculture on a 700 Acre Land, Dairy farming following international standards, 360-degree farming, organic fertilizer manufacturing, Hydel and Thermal Power Plants, Real Estate and Construction the group has diversified in almost all major verticals.
While he was working in Nagpur in a Rolling Mill in 1978, he got an offer to take over a sick unit. He tells us – “My mom’s support and keeping in view the 500 laborers and employees who would lose their job in case the unit closed down, I took over the sick unit. And from here started my working routine from 9 am to 12 pm at night. Soon I repaid all my loans, expanded units and just did not stop. He tells us “During 1994-2001 the Depression Phase, close to 300 furnaces shut down. We were among the very few which survived. In 1996 we were forced to shut down one unit. Virtually it was a huge lapse; we came from top to bottom and came under heavy debts. Foremost on my mind were the workers, so I paid them for three more months along with gratuity and other dues before shutting down units. We also helped them to get jobs in other units and approximately 80 percent of them were re-employed.
Because of meditation, I have always been able to take conscience decisions, decisions which would be good for all. From Backward Integration from mines to finished goods, we consciously took decisions.”