A total of 195 officials, including chairman Arvind Pande, will participate in the meeting and put forward their suggestions for improving the performance of the public sector undertaking.

An Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI) study, which is likely to be placed before the SAIL chairman by mid-September, has predicted a loss of Rs 800 crore to Rs 900 crore this fiscal if some drastic measures were not taken immediately. During the first quarter of the current fiscal, the company incurred a loss of Rs 311 crore.

This is for the second time in SAIL's history that such a meeting is being held. The first one was held in 1986 when V Krishnamurty was its chairman. After that one the steel major started earning profits and could maintain it till 1997-98.

"We are expecting a similar turnaround thistime," the spokesman said. "The management will listen to the suggestions made by the officials who directly implement the decisions taken by the SAIL board and take day to day decisions in plants or other offices of SAIL. When their suggestions will be incorporated in the board decision, they will have a sense of belonging in the company," he said. "This would be a departure from the previous practice when directions used to come from the above only," he added.

SAIL has booked 98 rooms at Taj Bengal Hotel for the participants on twin-sharing basis. Even its chairman Arvind Pande may share a room with another director of the company. "The money to be paid to the hotel for using its rooms and halls will be less than what we would have had to pay to any other hotel, even to a three-star one," he said.