: Lafarge

Lafarge India leads the way on sustainable construction

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 14:53:04 GMT

First Lafarge Invention Awards in India

in Presence of Bruno Lafont, Chairman and CEO, Lafarge

Lafarge, the world leader in building materials, today announced the winners of the 2011 Lafarge Invention Awards, a competition to recognise innovative thinkers who will contribute to the future evolution of sustainable construction in India. The winners were recognised by Mr. Bruno Lafont, Chairman and CEO of Lafarge Group.

The Invention Awards are just one example of the numerous initiatives taken by Lafarge in India to enhance innovation in building materials for sustainable construction in the country, where Lafarge started its operations in 1999. This initiative was a key focus for Mr. Lafont during his current visit to India, which also included the opening of a new laboratory dedicated to sustainable construction.

Lafarge India appoints Rediffusion DYR as its new creative agency

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:31:51 GMT

Lafarge India has appointed Rediffusion DYR as its new creative agency. Rediffusion has been given the brief for creating, preparing and directing brand specific communication for Lafarge India.

The agency shall conceptualise ideas, develop modules designs and work plan for creative, promotional layout, artwork and design. They will create and recommend the basic creative strategies and themes for Lafarge India. The media arm of the agency has already been handling the account.

Lafarge is a leading brand in Eastern India and has three products namely Lafarge Concreto, Lafarge Duraguard and Lafarge PSC. The company also offers guidance to homebuilders through the Lafarge Home Building Centre. M S Dhoni, the Indian captain, is the brand ambassador for Lafarge Concreto and has been associated with the brand for the last three years.

Speaking about the association, Madhumita Basu, Sr. VP Marketing Lafarge India said, "It's a challenging environment for the cement industry. We look forward to our new partnership with Rediffusion DYR to bring in fresh ideas and market understanding that will take the Lafarge brand to new heights."

Launch of the Lafarge Invention Awards 2011, to reward innovative projects for sustainable construction in India

Mon, 05 Sep 2011 06:06:44 GMT

Lafarge, the world leader in building materials, has announced the launch of the Lafarge Invention Awards 2011, a competition to reward innovative projects in India related to building materials and contributing to sustainable construction. The competition will target entrepreneurs or new companies, engineering consultants, architects, researchers and academics in India, who will have from September 1^st until November 30, 2011 to submit their entries, via a secure website www.lafarge-inventionawards.com.

Innovation is a strategic priority for Lafarge, which dedicates 150 million euros per year to technology and innovation in products, systems and industrial processes. With an industrial presence in India spanning more than 10 years, Lafarge is today seeking to promote innovation for sustainable construction in India and to strengthen its ties with materials science and construction experts across the country. The fast pace of Indian economic and demographic growth is generating immense needs for new infrastructure and housing, which must be met through new, innovative approaches to construction that take into account social, economic and environmental imperatives.

Announcing the launch of the competition, Pascal Casanova, Director of Research and Development at Lafarge, said:"Developing solutions to meet the specific needs of the Indian market requires close partnership with local actors in the construction chain. This is why we recently opened a joint laboratory with IIT Madras to push research on concrete quality and durability. We are today seeking to strengthen our collaboration with Indian construction innovators, through the Lafarge Invention Awards 2011."

The Lafarge Invention Awards aim to reward innovative projects related to Lafarge building materials - aggregates, cement, concrete and gypsum - and that contribute to sustainable construction. Projects submitted should be based on an invention less than 5 years old. They should involve a new product, industrial process, construction method or service and should have reached at least the prototype phase, ideally demonstrated in a real construction project. The competition was first launched in 2010, focusing on the European market for its first edition.

The three winning projects from the Lafarge Invention Awards 2011 will be selected in March 2012, by a panel of Lafarge executives and renowned experts, with prize winners receiving respectively 1,000,000 INR, 500,000 INR, and 250,000 INR.

For further information on the Lafarge Invention Awards: www.lafarge-inventionawards.com.

Watch the launch of the Lafarge Invention Awards 2011

Deepak Parekh joins Lafarge’s International Advisory Board Uday Khanna becomes Non–Executive Chairman of Lafarge India Private Limited

Wed, 17 Aug 2011 12:35:46 GMT

Ujjwal Batria and Danilo Buscalia nominated as new Joint Managing Directors

Mr. Deepak Parekh, Chairman of the Housing Development Finance Corporation in India, has joined Lafarge's International Advisory Board.

"We are absolutely delighted that Mr. Deepak Parekh has agreed to join the International Advisory Board of Lafarge Group," said Mr. Isidoro Miranda, Executive Vice-President, Co-President of the Cement Business. "Our India business unit has already benefited greatly from his guidance, and he will continue to provide us with invaluable advice in this new position on a global basis."

Mr. Deepak Parekh, has stepped down from his role as Non-Executive Chairman of Lafarge India Private Limited and Mr. Uday Khanna replaces Mr. Parekh as the Non - Executive Chairman.

Mr. Uday Khanna joined Lafarge Group in 2003 as senior Vice President of Group Strategy in Paris and moved to India as MD and CEO of the Indian operations in 2005. Effective from August 17, 2011, Mr. Khanna retires from his position of MD and CEO, Lafarge India Private Limited.

Mr. Danilo Buscaglia, the current Chief Operating Officer - East Zone, and Mr. Ujjwal Batria, the current Chief Projects Officer, will become joint Managing Directors holding management responsibility for Lafarge India Private Limited, in charge of the Cement Business of Lafarge in India.

Lafarge receives FICCI Safety Excellence Award

Thu, 14 Jul 2011 05:24:48 GMT

Lafarge India, has been awarded the first FICCI Safety Excellence Award for Manufacturing. Shri Mallikarjun M Kharge, Hon'ble Minister for Labour and Employment, Govt of India presented the award to Mr. Uday Khanna, CEO & Managing Director-Lafarge India.

Lafarge India bagged the Platinum Award (1st Prize) in the large scale manufacturing units category. Lafarge India was selected from over 200 companies who participated in the evaluation. A thorough audit of compliance of Health & Safety Standards by a distinguished panel was undertaken at Lafarge India's Sonadih Cement Plant. The Sonadih plant offered potent glimpses of how implementation and practice of Health & Safety parameters like WAH (Working at Height), PPE (Personal Protective equipments) usage, Energy Isolation, LOTOTO (Lock Out, Tag Out, Try Out) and Transportation Safety by Lafarge India has lead to continuous improvement in performance.

At Lafarge India Health & Safety is of topmost priority. The company has undertaken various initiatives over the years to create a safety culture among its employees and all stakeholders. The month of June every year is celebrated as a Health & Safety month across all Lafarge sites globally and in India to help exchange learnings and processes and engage people towards creating greater awareness for health & safety. Due to its stringent policies and procedures, Lafarge India has been able to clock 42 million man hours without any major incident or accident.

Uday Khanna, CEO and Managing Director- Lafarge India says "We are delighted to have won the Platinum Award (1st Prize) for FICCI Safety Excellence Award. This is a very positive development and represents the industry's acknowledgement of the Health & Safety initiatives being undertaken by Lafarge India across all its plants. Lafarge places the stakeholders at the heart of its concerns. We sincerely hope that these initiatives will contribute in achieving "zero fatal accident" rate and "zero work related illness" rate so that Lafarge can have one of the best health and safety records among global industrial groups."

About Lafarge in India

Lafarge is one of the major producers of Cement in Eastern and Central India with its leading brands - Concreto and Duraguard. It currently has four cement plants in India: 2 plants in the state of Chattisgarh and a grinding plant each in Jharkhand and West Bengal. Lafarge has several green-field projects in the pipeline, which will expand its national footprint in the coming years. .

In addition to Cement, Lafarge is also present in India in its other businesses namely, Aggregates and Concrete and Gypsum plasterboard. Following the acquisition of L&T's Ready-mix Concrete business in 2008, Lafarge is the market leader in the segment and currently has around 80 plants across the country. The company has also setup its first Greenfield gypsum plasterboard plant at Khushkhera near Rajasthan having an annual production capacity of 10 million m² where it produces its brand of LaGyp plasterboard - which provides the best ‘green' substitute for interiors and contributes to "green" accreditation of buildings under the ‘LEED' system.

About Lafarge

Lafarge is the world leader in building materials, with top ranking positions in all of its businesses: Cement, Aggregates & Concrete and Gypsum. With 76,000 employees in 78 countries, Lafarge posted sales of Euros 16.2 billion in 2010.

Lafarge was ranked 6th in the "Carbon Disclosure Project" and entered the global "Dow Jones Sustainability Index" in 2010 in recognition of its sustainable development actions. With the world's leading building materials research facility, Lafarge places innovation at the heart of its priorities, working for sustainable construction and architectural creativity.

Additional information is available on the web site at www.lafarge.com

IIT Madaras & Lafarge collaborate to scale new heights in concrete research

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 05:37:28 GMT

Lafarge Research Center, the R&D wing of Lafarge Group, today announced their collaboration with IIT Madras, Chennai to conduct research on the durability and long term performance of concrete. Lafarge and the Department of Civil Engineering of Indian Institute of Technology Madras is setting up a state-of-the-art laboratory dedicated to the study of the mechanisms influencing the degradation of reinforced concrete structures.

This is a first of its kind collaboration in India, wherein Lafarge is collaborating with a premier institution for furthering research in concrete quality, life and durability. This partnership is part of a global initiative wherein Lafarge is tying up with premier institutes around the world for research on the durability of concrete.

The joint research and development program would take into account the construction materials, techniques and prevailing systems followed in India. IIT Madras will share updates and findings from the investigations conducted at the IIT Madras with Lafarge.

Remarkable progress has been made in the concrete industry as a result of fundamental research and innovation, not only in technical terms but also in terms of aesthetics and comfort. Concrete is increasingly being "made to order" in response to ever-increasing demands and challenges, such as reducing the environmental footprint, making complex structures easier to construct, improving aesthetics as well as the contribution to energy efficiency of the building.

Announcing the association, Dr. Pascal Casanova, Group R&D Head said "Lafarge aims to improve the performance of concrete to address sustainable construction and global warming challenges. This is done through cutting-edge scientific research and forming partnerships with other institutes and organizations. We are proud to be associated with one of India's premier technical educational institutions. We believe IIT Madras is extremely qualified and has in-depth technical knowledge and experience to provide valuable input to the research needs of the construction sector."

Prof. V. G. Idichandy, Deputy Director, IIT Madras said that the collaboration with Lafarge Research Center would be a great platform for the concrete research group at IIT Madras to effectively extend and broaden their understanding of sustainable construction materials and technologies. He was confident of a continued and mutually-benefiting relationship with Lafarge.

About IITM

Indian Institute of Technology Madras was established in 1959, with technical assistance from the German government, in a beautiful wooded land of about 250 hectares. The Institute now has sixteen academic departments and several advanced research centres in various disciplines of engineering and pure sciences. A faculty of international repute, a brilliant student community, excellent technical & supporting staff and an effective administration has all contributed to the pre-eminent status of IIT Madras. The Department of Civil Engineering has been in existence since the inception of IIT Madras, and has grown into a full fledged faculty with specialisations in all the major areas of civil engineering, embracing planning, design, construction and management. The research in the science and technology of concrete at IIT Madras includes the development and characterization of advanced cement-based materials, short- and long-term behaviour of concrete, properties related to comfort in a building, durability, construction methods and equipment, and construction management issues.

For more information - http://www.iitm.ac.in/institute & http://www.civil.iitm.ac.in/

About Lafarge Research Center

In order to better serve customers and develop solutions which are ever more suited to their needs, Lafarge believes it is necessary to develop a multidisciplinary and general understanding of building materials upstream. This is exactly the role of the Lafarge Research Center (LCR). Near Lyons (France), Lafarge's Technology Center employs 500 people of more than 20 nationalities. It hosts the Lafarge Research Center as well as Intellectual Property & Technological Watch Departments and several key entities of the Cement business. The Group today boasts the world's leading building materials research facility with the Lafarge Research Center, which houses 6,000m² of laboratories equipped with highly sophisticated testing and analysis instruments.

About Lafarge

World leader in building materials, Lafarge extracts resources from the heart of the earth to make materials to bring to the heart of life. Present in 78 countries, the Group responds to the world's demand for housing and infrastructure. Lafarge is driven by the needs of its customers, shareholders, local communities and architects. The Group creates high value-added solutions which encourage creativity whilst leaving a lighter trace on the world.

For more information - www.lafarge.com

Dhoni felicitates winners of Lafarge India’s “Dream Home Contest”

Mon, 29 Nov 2010 10:15:23 GMT

Lafarge India today announced the name of the winners of the first-ever "Dream Home Contest" launched by the company for homebuilders, masons, architects and engineers. Since the launch of the initiative in the markets of Jharkhand and Bihar in mid August, the company received more than 17,000 entries, which is an unprecedented number for any direct campaign. Lafarge also announced that henceforth the "Dream Home Contest" would be organized every year across its key markets.

The winners, adjudged by a panel of renowned architects, engineers, media personalities and academicians, were felicitated by Lafarge Brand Ambassador and India cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

The "Dream Home Contest" was held across 5 categories namely Best House, Best Architect, Best Low Budget Home, Best Innovation and Best Workmanship.

Commenting on the occasion M S Dhoni said, "The winners of this contest do deserve double admiration. One for winning the contest and also for choosing a product like Lafarge Concreto to build their homes. Everyone of us cherishes the dream of having a home of our own. And we strive through each day just to make that dream come true. Our homes are an extension of ourselves, our thoughts and aspirations in life. Hence we should never compromise on the quality we use for its construction. Am proud that I choose Lafarge Concreto for my home in Ranchi."

Speaking about this initiative Madhumita Basu, Sr. VP Marketing Lafarge India said, "Lafarge Concreto, as we all know promises landmark homes. It is to bring this promise to life and be associated with beautiful homes, that we have created this contest. It is a celebration of "Dream Homes" everywhere. The contest is aimed at generating awareness about the Best Quality, Best Finish and Best Strength attributes of the product."

Lafarge India launches "Dream Home Contest" Dhoni meeting on card for winners

Mon, 18 Oct 2010 17:16:04 GMT

Lafarge India recently announced the launch of a unique contest for homebuilders, masons, architects and engineers across Jharkhand and Bihar. Titled the "Lafarge Concreto Dream Home Contest," this initiative is primarily for all homeowners who have constructed their house using Lafarge Concreto. This contest was aimed at generating awareness about the Best Quality, Best Finish and Best Strength attributes of the product. Submission of entries was open for over two months till 15^th October 2010. The winners were selected by an expert panel and will get a chance to meet the captain of the Indian cricket team and Lafarge's brand ambassador M S Dhoni.

The dream home contest was held across 5 categories i.e. Best House, Best Architect, Best Low Budget House, Best Innovation and Best Workmanship. Entry forms were made available through the dealers as well as from mobile vans, which were touring both the states. All entries were to be supported with relevant purchase invoice of procurement between January 2010 to October 2010.

LaGyp Successfully Completed Shanghai Expo Contest

Thu, 30 Sep 2010 09:17:07 GMT

As a part of the Lafarge Global Architect campaign, this year LaGyp has participated in Shanghai World Expo 2010. Themed ‘Better City, Better Life’, the event which will generate blueprints for future cities and harmonious urban lifestyles, providing an extraordinary educational and entertaining platform for all visitors. LaGyp had hosted a World Expo 2010 contest inviting architects to take part in a quiz that presented an opportunity to win an all expenses paid trip to the World Expo 2010, as a special invitee from 8th to 11th June, 2010 and 26th to 30th Sep, 2010 . The exposition is first registered world exposition in a developing country, which gives expression to the world’s expectations on China’s future development. Expo 2010 Shanghai, China is a great event to explore the full potential of urban life in the 21st century and a significant period in urban evolution. The design creations and initiatives representing different cultures, all at one place received an overwhelming response, making the competition a huge success. As a part of the contest two batches of architects were sent to Shanghai Expo as special guests to explore new dimensions in constructions and interiors. The selected guests include Ar Sanjay Singh - Arcop, Ar Deepak Pant – Adrianse, Ar Aftab Rasool – Pragrup, Ar Bijan Kumar Chakraborty – ACME Consultants Pvt. Ltd, Ar Chiranjib Dey - Edifice Consultants Pvt. Ltd., Ar Chirag Uttam Jain - UCJ Architecture & Environment, Ar Ravindra Verma - Kothari Associates Pvt. Ltd., Ar Utkarsh Kothari - Kothari Associates Pvt. Ltd. and Ar Vistasp Bhagwagar - Architect Vistasp & Associates.

Shanghai Expo - Contest & Win Free Trip as Lafarge Guest

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 16:11:11 GMT

As a part of the Lafarge Global Architect Campaign, Lafarge Avant Garde is proud to present to you another opportunity to travel to the World Expo 2010, Shanghai, China that started from 1st May 2010 and will extend up to 31st October 2010. Themed \'Better City, Better Life\', the Shanghai World Expo 2010 will generate blueprints for future cities and harmonious urban lifestyles, providing an extraordinary educational and entertaining platform for all visitors. Lafarge gives you an opportunity to visit this grand fair as its special inviteee. For registration please visit www.aecworldxp.com Last date of submission of entries: 31st August, 2010 (Avant Garde is the Indian vertical of Lafarge Global Architect Campaign, an endeavour by Lafarge to establish partnership and collaboration with the architecture & design community globally, to share information, create a platform for recognition through the Lafarge Hall of Fame Awards and to boost innovations in Architecture & Construction.)

Lafarge India launches massive tree plantation campaign in Chattisgarh

Tue, 03 Aug 2010 06:02:14 GMT

As a part of their Corporate Social Responsibility initiative Lafarge India has announced the launch of an ambitious drive to increase the green cover in areas close to their plants at Sonadih and Arasmeta. The company recently launched two separate campaigns at Baloda Bazar and Arasmeta in the presence of senior officials of the District Administration, local representatives, villagers and Vice Presidents of the two plants. This initiative by Lafarge is in keeping with the special plantation drive "Hariyar Chattisgarh (Green Chattisgarh) launched by the Government of Chattisgarh. Lafarge India has already planted 2500 saplings of different varieties at Kannya Mahavidyala near Baloda Bazar. Plans are afoot to plant another 20,000 saplings on both sides of the 10 km road expanse close to the Sonadih plant. This will cover the 6 km stretch from Baloda Bazar to Sonadih Cement Plant and another 4 km stretch from Baloda Bazar Chowk to Bitkhuli. The company is also undertaking plantation of another 25,000 saplings in the villages surrounding their Arasmeta Cement Plant. Commenting about these initiatives Mr. Sandip Ghose Sr. VP Corporate Affairs Lafarge India said, "As a Group, Lafarge has always been committed about protecting the environment. Lafarge is the only company within the cement industry to have been named among the 100 Global Most Sustainable Corporations in the World for the sixth year in a row. Lafarge will continue its endeavor towards building a sustainable environment in and around its plants."

Note to Editors:Lafarge is the world leader in building materials, with top-ranking positions in all of its businesses: Cement, Aggregates & Concrete and Gypsum. Lafarge is one of the major producers of Cement ands a co-market leader in its key markets of Eastern and Central India with its leading brands - Concreto and Duraguard. It currently has four cement plants in India: 2 plants in the state of Chattisgarh and a grinding plant each in Jharkhand and West Bengal.Lafarge today is the market leader in the ready-mix concrete business with 70 plants and has also built a gypsum plasterboard plant near Khushkhera, Rajasthan, with an annual capacity of around 10 million m².

World Expo 2010 Shanghai Contest

Sat, 01 May 2010 16:15:30 GMT

Here is your chance to be a special invitee The Lafarge Hall of Fame introduces a contest that will 'fly' you to the World Expo 2010, Shanghai. As a part of the Lafarge Global Architect Campaign, Lafarge is proud to present to you an opportunity to travel to the World Expo 2010, Shanghai, China as its special invitee from 8th to 11th June 2010. Themed 'Better City, Better Life, the World Expo 2010, Shanghai will generate blueprints for future cities and harmonious urban life styles, providing an extraordinary educational and entertaining platform for all visitors. Lafarge gives you an opportunity to visit this grand fair as its special invitees. To be a part of this opportunity, we invite architects from across India to participate in this simple contest and register online at www.aecworldxp.com. Registration Deadline :- May 15, 2010

Lafarge hopes for early resumption of mining operations in Meghalaya

Mon, 12 Apr 2010 09:33:45 GMT

Mumbai, April 12, 2010: We welcome the Hon'ble Supreme Court's directive to have an independent MoEF Environmental Assessment Committee to review the Environment Compliance Reports by the next hearing, which was also the recommendation of the Attorney General and the high-powered committee. This will then be presented to the court. Lafarge is confident of an early resolution of the matter, as the company has always applied the highest standards of environmental compliance.

The report submitted by the high-powered committee of the MOEF headed by Mr. B N Jha, RCCF North Eastern Regional Office of Environment and Forest and other senior officials who visited the site recently under the orders of the Hon'ble Supreme Court - has confirmed that the company was meeting the environment standards and was in compliance with the set norms.

The report also documents the over-whelming support of the villagers of both the Shella and the Nongtrai Durbars.

Lafarge and its communities

Lafarge always keeps at its heart the Interest of the communities where we operate. In Meghalaya, over the years, Lafarge has contributed in a variety of ways to the development of the people of Nongtrai and Shella. In addition to the income that is generated from the operations, the company has been carrying out infrastructure support & improvement projects in the villages. The company has also undertaken several CSR projects in the areas of employability, education and health.

This too is reflected in the report of the High Powered Committee.

"The impact of mining on the surrounding villages in Nongtrai and Shella (especially Nongtrai) was found very positive and beneficial to the residents due to huge amount of cash going to Village Durbar and reaching to individual households improving the financial health of the population of the villages."

Going forward, LUMPL had plans to intensify these activities. It, therefore, welcomes the AG's recommendation to set up a "Special Purpose Vehicle" (SPV) - which would provide a structure and organization for implementation of these activities and also bring greater transparency in the processes - to ensure that the interests of all stake-holders are equitably met.

Lafarge is committed to total legal and environmental compliance. We are therefore confident of an early and speedy resolution of the matter in the best interest of all stakeholders.

LUMPL’s commitment to environment reaffirmed in MoEF report

Fri, 09 Apr 2010 05:24:47 GMT

The report of the MoEF, which was presented to the Hon'ble Supreme Court today reaffirmed LUMPL's environment compliances. The high powered team headed by Mr. B N Jha, RCCP North Eastern Regional Office of Environment and Forest and other senior officials who visited the site - with specific terms of reference - have confirmed that LUMPL has been following high standards of Environmental compliance. The report also documents the strong support of the local population of both the Shella and Nongtrai Dorbars for the project.

The committee also met the local population and institutions and members of the Church. The report reiterates that "the local population and institutions do not have any problem/grievances with LUMPL and they want that the mining should be allowed to take place and Government of India to give all clearance needed for the same."

Lafarge is fully committed to total legal and environmental compliance. The company has always acted in good faith respecting the laws of the land wherever it operates - with strong commitments to environment and development of the local communities.

The company is pleased that the Hon'ble Supreme Court has set an early date of hearing for Monday 12^th April' 10. We hope for a speedy resolution of the matter in the best interest of all stakeholders.

Lafarge Launches Avant Garde - Catalyst for Change for Indian Architects

Thu, 01 Apr 2010 16:19:44 GMT

Lafarge Avant Garde is the Indian vertical of Lafarge Global Architect Campaign, an endeavour by Lafarge to establish partnership and collaboration with the architecture & design community globally, to share information, create a platform for recognition through the Lafarge Hall of Fame Awards and to boost innovations in Architecture & Construction. This year, India remains in the focus of Lafarge and we have many more intiaitives in store for the year 2010. FIRST, we have rechristened this initiative 'AVANT GARDE Catalyst For Change'. SECOND, is the possibility of being nominated to visit the World Expo 2010, Shanghai as a guest of Lafarge. For this we have initiated a competition campaign. THIRD, will be a series of seminars by various Indian and International architects, for the architectural fraternity. LAST but not least, we have in store the nominations for the Lafarge Hall of Fame Awards and the Grand Ceremony, which will be held in late 2010. These, among other planned events, make 2010 a promising year for the Indian Construction Industry. For more information, please write to Mr Deepak Nagpal at deepak.nagpal@in.lafarge.com

Lafarge reiterates its commitment to environment and legal compliances for its operations in Meghalaya

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 18:25:19 GMT

It has been brought to our notice that, a self-styled organization describing themselves as Shella Action Committee had held a Press Conference earlier today and also issued a Statement making several unsubstantiated allegations against Lafarge Umiam Mining Pvt. Ltd (LUMPL).

There is nothing new in the allegations made today by the SAC, which is an unconnected breakaway group of Shella Village Durbar - that neither represents the Shella or Nongtrai Durbar where the LUMPL operations are located. They have been advocating against the continuation of the project on various fictitious grounds for a long time.

In a representation submitted to the Chief Minster of Meghalaya, the Nongtrai Durbar stated that the Shella Action Committee does not represent their village or never contributed to the benefits or welfare of the local tribals. SAC's activities are limited to creating disturbances on the smooth operations of LUMPL. Similar allegations made by the SAC in a case filed in Gauhati High Court, were examined by the State Government and found to be false and baseless and, accordingly, the State Government filed an affidavit in the Gauhati High Court to the same effect.

Forest Clearance

LUMPL reiterates that it embarked upon mining operations in Nongtrai and Shella, East Khasi Hills Meghalaya only after receiving clearance from the competent authorities and it has always abided by the determinations as made by the authorities. After MoEF re-classified the area as forest and required the company to obtain Forest Clearance - the company immediately complied with this directive, stopped the mine and applied for forest clearance permission under Section 2 of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980. Since then the Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) & the Central empowered Committee (CEC) recommended that Forest Clearance under Sec 2 of FCA should be granted with certain conditions. Subsequently, the Supreme Court granted interim relief to the company to continue mining operations on 23 November, 2007.

In the hearing of February 5^th - the Supreme Court raised certain questions regarding the operations relating to transfer pricing etc - pending replies to these points it directed the company to temporarily suspend its mining operations till the date of next hearing.

LUMPL strictly adhered to the Hon'ble Supreme Court's decision and immediately stopped its mining operations in the area. It may be pertinent to note that the Hon'ble Supreme Court had while temporarily restraining the mining operations till the date of next hearing had very sympathetically considered our position and allowed the movement of the stock of already mined material lying at the source.

Land Transfer & Mortgage issues

The Meghalaya Land Transfer Act allows the transfer of Tribal land in Meghalaya under certain conditions. The Samatha Judgement of Supreme Court - quoted by the SAC in their statement -is, therefore, not applicable to Meghalaya.

LUMPL has fully complied with the Meghalaya Land Transfer Laws and obtained all necessary approvals of the State Government in this regard.

Again, the issue of Mortgage of Land is not a new one - it has been heard even earlier before the Meghalaya High-Court, when the company's position had been clarified. LUMPL had obtained requisite approvals for the mortgages from the Government of Meghalaya and the Reserve Bank of India way back in 2005 - which impose necessary conditions so that in the event of non-payment of the loan and for recovery of the same under no circumstances the land will be transferred to a person other than a permanent tribal local resident of the State. Therefore, there is no question of the land holding laws of Meghalaya in relation to the tribals or locals being violated at any point. LUMPL has submitted all relevant details in the company's affidavit, which will be heard in the court. We have no further comments to make at this stage since the matter is sub-judice.

Lafarge credentials

Lafarge operates in over 79 countries across the world and operates with strict compliance to the laws of the land. It has an impeccable record on environmental issues and maintains the highest standards of environment compliance to ensure impacts to the environment mitigated and kept well within the laid down norms and standards.

About Lafarge Umiam Mining Pvt. Ltd. Lafarge Umiam Mining Private Limited (LUMPL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Lafarge Surma Cement Limited Bangladesh has a mining operation located in Shella in the East Khasi Hills of the State of Meghalaya in India exports limestone and shale to the cement plant in Bangladesh through a 17 Km long conveyor belt. This unique cross-border project, the first and only one of its kind between India & Bangladesh.

About Lafarge

Lafarge is the world leader in building materials, with top-ranking positions in all of its businesses: Cement, Aggregates & Concrete and Gypsum. With more than 78,000 employees in 78 countries, Lafarge posted sales of Euros 15.9 billion in 2009.

In 2009 and for the fifth year in a row, Lafarge was listed in the ‘Global 100 Most Sustainable

Corporations in the World'. With the world's leading building materials research facility, Lafarge places innovation at the heart of its priorities, working for sustainable construction and architectural creativity.

Additional information is available on: www.lafarge.com

Lafarge Global Architect Campaign All set to reach new heights

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 17:44:14 GMT

Lafarge and Columbia's Graduate School of Architecture are working together on sustainable construction challenges and have created a new program exploring the use of innovative concretes as part of redevelopment of the city of El Paso, Texas.

Lafarge Launches TV campaign to promote Ready-Mix Concrete

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 10:07:11 GMT

Lafarge Concrete entered India in 2008. This was followed by the Company's acquisition of L&T Concrete in May 2008. With over 75 plants across 35 cities, Lafarge has emerged in a very short time as the Market leader in Ready-Mix Concrete category in India.

Ready-Mix Concrete comes with a host of benefits that includes unequalled durability, uniquely mechanical and fire resistant and high acoustic insulation qualities. Lafarge has been working with some of the leading builders, developers and contractors in the country who have been fast adopting Ready-Mix Concrete as the material of choice for their commercial, industrial and residential projects.

However, Ready Mix concrete is still at a very nascent stage in India (with a low penetration level of just 4% as against 50% in other Asian markets), Being a material of the future - Ready Mix Concrete has the potential for revolutionising construction practices in India. Lafarge has been consistently delivering quality and innovation to the customers' jobsites, reinventing the role of concrete in the construction techniques in India.

In an effort to promote the Ready Mix category in the Indian market, Lafarge Concrete has launched a TV commercial ‘Zamana Badal Raha Hai' One of the biggest campaigns in the Ready Mix industry, the commercial is being aired extensively in leading national and regional channels. Built on the concept- "times are changing" - the TV commercial is targeted at individuals home builders as well as small and medium sized contractors and builders and positions Lafarge Concrete as the new age construction material.

Being the world leader in building materials, Lafarge has been able to combine international quality with local expertise. Lafarge Concrete promises faster construction and lower pollution with its range of Value Added Innovative Concrete Products that are suited for specific applications and reinvent the role of concrete in the construction techniques in the Indian Market.

Lafarge India’s Second Line at Sonadih Cement Plant goes on stream

Wed, 06 Jan 2010 13:28:25 GMT

Raipur, January 6, 2010

Lafarge India announced the commissioning of a new Cement Clinker line at its Sonadih Cement Plant in District Raipur, Chattisgarh. With the installation of the new Clinker line, Lafarge India's production capacity will stand at 6.5 million tons of Cement, which will further increase to 7.5 million tons after the completion of the grinding unit at Jojobera, Jamshedpur (Jharkhand). In a function held at Sonadih on January 5^th 2010, Dr. Raman Singh, Hon'ble Chief Minister of Chattisgarh inaugurated the unit in the presence of Mr. Bruno Lafont, Chairman & CEO Lafarge Group. Also present on the occasion where senior ministers of the state cabinet and other dignitaries.

Commenting on the new unit Mr. Bruno Lafont, Chairman & CEO Lafarge Group observed, "This is a significant step in our strategy to consolidate our premier position in the Eastern India and re-iterates commitment to India, which is a key geography for Lafarge with its focus on the emerging markets.

About Lafarge in India

In addition to Cement, Lafarge is also present in India in its other businesses namely, Aggregates and Concrete and Gypsum plasterboard. Following the acquisition of L&T's Ready-mix Concrete business in 2008, Lafarge is the market leader in the segment and currently has around 78 plants across the country. The company has also setup its first Greenfield gypsum plasterboad plant at Khushkhera near Rajasthan having an annual production capacity of 10 million m² where it produces its brand of LaGyp plasterboard - which provides the best ‘green' substitute for interiors and contributes to "green" accreditation of buildings under the ‘LEED' system.

About Lafarge

Lafarge is the world leader in building materials, with top-ranking positions in all of its businesses: Cement, Aggregates & Concrete and Gypsum. With more than 84,000 employees in 79 countries, Lafarge posted sales of Euros 19 billion in 2008.

In 2009 and for the fifth year in a row, Lafarge was listed in the ‘Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World'. With the world's leading building materials research facility, Lafarge places innovation at the heart of its priorities, working for sustainable construction and architectural creativity. Additional information in available on the web site at www.lafarge.com

Lafarge India employees support school children in the aila affected areas of sunderbans

Tue, 28 Jul 2009 05:21:55 GMT

Kolkata, July 28, 2009:

Lafarge India and its employees have undertaken post-relief rehabilitation work in some of the AILA affected areas in the Sunderbans. Post the relief phase, one of the needs identified was rehabilitation of school-children whose homes and schools were hit by the AILA.

In a spontaneous response, Lafarge India employees went on a voluntary collection drive. Their contributions were matched by an equvalent amount by the company. As a first step, Lafarge employees, visited schools in the villages of Santhjhelia and Lahiripara and distributed educational stationery to over 4000 students.

Further essential materials such as Bleaching powder, Zeoline tablets were donated for the on-going relief work in the area. The activities were undertaken through NIDHEE a ‘not-for-profit' trust promoted by Lafarge India.

Mr Uday Khanna, CEO Lafarge India stated, " As a responsible Corporate Citizen we try to do our bit for the communities around which we operate in. We hope that this initiative of the employees and the Company will be a positive reinforcement for children to start attending school and getting back to normal life."Educational stationery being distributed by Lafarge India employees