Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren has asked industries in the mineral-rich Singhbhum area to prioritise the aspirations of local people.

After inaugurating a railway overbridge, a renovated town hall and distributing assets and appointment letters to beneficiaries at Chaibasa in West Singhbhum district on Thursday evening, Soren said: “The government is working on ensuring that the benefits of industry are reaped by the local residents. If the industries think about local aspirations, then the villagers and locals would also be with them all the time.”

Soren appreciated ACC Cements for giving appointment letters to 45 locals.

The chief minister had a few days back written to the Union health minister (Mansukh Mandaviya) expressing concern about the under-representation of local people in the staff of the under-construction All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Deoghar.

Soren also handed over apprenticeship letters to 36 candidates who had been selected for apprenticeship in Tata Steel and distributed Kisan Credit Card (KCC) loans to 3,351 farmers on Thursday.

“The mineral-rich region of Singhbhum will soon get a steel plant and several big industries and it will create lots of employment opportunities. We would also ensure good transport facilities for industries with a bypass road linking Chaibasa and Hatgamharia and connecting all mining areas of the state to Haldia port (in Bengal) without interfering with city roads.

“A detailed project report worth Rs 250 crore has been made. At the moment Rs 3 crore has been sanctioned for strengthening roads and the construction work will start this year itself,” said Soren.

The chief minister said the railway overbridge built on the Chaibasa-Hata Main Road will remove traffic bottlenecks for the residents of Chaibasa. The 780-metre long and 11.5m wide ROB has been built at a cost of Rs 43.12 crore.

Soren assured that the government is working on reopening of closed mines in the area. The chief minister also appreciated Rungta Mines for utilising its corporate social responsibility funds to renovate the 80-year-old Pillai Town Hall.

Soren laid foundation stones for 95 projects and inaugurated another 44 projects.