A protest at the HMT complex in Pinjore has renewed demands to reopen the tractor plant shut in 2016, strengthen the machine tools unit and bring new industrial activity to the 446-acre site, with local representatives linking the complex’s future to jobs, land utilisation and regional connectivity.
The demonstration was held at the HMT gate under the aegis of the HMT Bachao Sangharsh Samiti. Protesters raised slogans of “Save HMT, Save Jobs” and submitted a memorandum to Varun Chaudhary, Congress MP from the Ambala Lok Sabha constituency, who attended the protest as chief guest.
The memorandum, submitted by Samiti patron and advocate Vijay Bansal, asked the MP to raise the issue in Parliament and press the central government either to reopen the HMT tractor plant or establish a major industrial unit on the premises. The demands also included measures to improve the financial condition of HMT’s machine tools factory and the creation of new industrial units within the complex.
Chaudhary questioned why around 446 acres of land inside the HMT complex had not been properly utilised. He also called for a state-of-the-art skill development centre to provide employment-oriented training to local youth. According to the report, he expressed concern that the machine tools unit was not receiving sufficient funds despite having work and orders.
Bansal said a special package of Rs 1,083 crore for HMT had been approved at a Cabinet Committee meeting on April 18, 2013. He said the package included provisions for employee salary hikes and an increase in the retirement age from 58 to 60 years. These claims were made during the protest and were not independently detailed in the supplied report.
The HMT tractor plant was shut after the Union cabinet approved its closure in 2016 and the disbursement of voluntary retirement scheme benefits to all its employees. The tractor division was stated to be incurring financial losses at the time. Protest organisers now argue that the closure caused substantial industrial and economic losses for Pinjore, Kalka and surrounding areas.
Bansal further said that both the tractor and machine tools divisions had work orders but that production had not continued, limiting the use of existing industrial resources. He suggested that if restarting the tractor plant was not feasible, the government should establish another major industrial facility on the premises to generate employment and support the regional economy.
The demands also extend beyond factory operations. The Samiti sought permissions and government support for constructing and improving roads connecting the HMT complex with Haryana Urban Development Authority sectors, an electricity substation and nearby villages. The request places the industrial site within a wider local infrastructure network involving workers, residents and surrounding settlements.
A delegation from the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Tikait) separately submitted a memorandum seeking a grain market at the site of the existing apple market within the HMT Pinjore complex. The proposed market would support the procurement and sale of wheat, paddy and maize.
The immediate next step sought by the protesters is action by the central government on the revival of the tractor plant, financial support for the machine tools unit or the establishment of an alternative industrial facility at the HMT premises.
