Central Government Stalls Visakhapatnam Steel Plant Privatisation, BRS Claims Victory

The Centre has stalled the privatisation of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant amid strong opposition from the VSP employees and non-BJP parties.

Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leaders claimed that the Centre going back on the privatisation of Vizag Steel Plant is a victory for BRS.

Source : ABP Desam

The central government will not go ahead with the privatisation of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP), Union Minister of State for Steel Faggan Singh Kulaste announced on the sidelines of a Rozgar Mela in Visakhapatnam. The minister told reporters that "At this moment, we don't have any plans like that (a sale). We will not go ahead with the process." Kulaste said the central government will strengthen the Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL), the corporate entity of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP). He will have discussions with the management, the worker unions, and all the stakeholders as part of this effort.

Kulaste said they would now focus on strengthening VSP by ensuring the supply of raw materials. He said that steps are being taken to ensure that the plant operates at full capacity.

The announcement came amid strong opposition from the VSP employees and non-BJP parties to the privatisation movement, and also the intention of the Telangana government to participate in the bidding process to raise working capital for the steel plant through Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL). RINL had recently invited an Expression of Interest (EOI) to provide working capital and raw materials after it faced a severe shortage to keep the plant running.

Earlier, Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar sent a team of officials to the VSP to study the feasibility of participating in the Expression of Interest (EOI) for its acquisition. While opposing the Centre's plans to privatise the PSU, the BRS government had expressed interest in acquiring VSP. The employees had also welcomed the move, saying that the acquisition of VSP by SCCL would protect their interests.

Responding to the Union minister's announcement, Minister K T Rama Rao said it was a move to divert attention from Bailadila iron ore mining. He claimed that since he had exposed the Centre over the issue, it stopped the privatisation process to divert public attention. He said if the Centre was sincere, it should have allotted captive mines to VSP and also fulfilled its commitment to setting up a steel plant at Bayyaram in Telangana.

BRS leader in Andhra Pradesh, Ravela Kishore Babu, claimed that the Centre going back on the privatisation of Vizag Steel Plant is a victory for BRS.

 

"When the main political parties in Andhra Pradesh could not fight for the steel plant, BRS under the leadership of KCR started fighting to save the steel plant from being privatised," he said.