The Attorney General, Minister of Agro-Industry and Food Security, Mr Maneesh Gobin met, this afternoon, representatives of Alteo to discuss the Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) projects being undertaken in Cascavelle, Bambous and Palma.
Mr Joel Bruneau, Managing Director of the Property department of Medine Group, Mr Dhiren Ponnusamy, Chief Operating Officer at Medine Group, Mr Rajeshnarain Gutteea, Project Operators Executive at the Mauritius Cane Industry Authority (MCIA) and three beneficiaries of the VRS projects were in attendance.
In a statement after the meeting, the Minister underlined that consultations focused on three projects namely Médine Blue Print (Casela) in Cascavelle and Médine VRS in Bambous and Palma.
‘We discussed the issue being encountered in the project in Palma as pits were found in some plot of lands initially identified for the project,’ he said. He stated that other sites are being identified for the beneficiaries affected by this issue.
The Minister further commended the ongoing spirit of cooperation among the beneficiaries, project leaders, the MCIA and the Ministry.
He reassured the 115 beneficiaries of the Bambous VRS and the 107 beneficiaries of Cascavelle Blueprint and the 118 beneficiaries of the Palma VRS, that the three projects will be completed in a timely manner, and in priority order.
He announced that the Bambous VRS project has been completed and the Cascavelle project will reach completion by September.
As for Mr Gutteea, he stressed that the MCIA is doing its best to ensure prompt project implementation for the beneficiaries. He added that the MCIA is ensuring that the works are being done according to the necessary norms and regulations.
While underlining that the pits at Palma were identified during a site visit by the MCIA, he reassured that the infrastructural works will be carried out once a clearance is obtained from the appropriate authorities.
For his part, Mr Ponnusamy, underlined that the possible solutions being encountered in the implementation of the Palma VRS were evoked during the meeting. ‘We spoke about the relocation of the affected plot of lands, and we will now be able to move forward with the project and complete the infrastructural works as soon as possible’, he said.