KTR Smells Conspiracy in BJP Eyeing Singareni Collieries Privatisation

KTR attacked the BJP led Union Govt stating that a conspiracy is going on to privatize Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) in Telangana. “The coal of Singareni Collieries is a big asset for Telangana. People of Telangana will give a befitting reply to BJP for their act of privatizing Singareni,” he said. 

KTR stated that SCCL is not just a coal mine but a gold mine that is giving employment to thousands of youth of Telangana. Employees of Singareni and the people of Telangana will show their power in Delhi if the BJP continues its attempts to privatize the company. This agitation will be much bigger than the agitation staged against the three farm laws, he said. 

The Minister said that the Telangana leaders will stand by the Singareni employees in this fight against BJP. 

Minister KTR also expressed anger over asking the SCCL to participate in the auction for JBROC-3, KK-6, Shravana Pally OC, Koyagudem coal mines instead of allocating them directly to the company. 

The center is supposed to allocate coal mines to strengthen the Singareni which is running in profits. Instead, they are asking the company to take part in an auction for mines. This is nothing but creating hurdles for Telangana and its development, said Minister KTR. 

KTR today wrote a letter to Union Minister Prahlad Joshi strongly demanding the allocation of coal mines directly to Singareni. 

In his letter, KTR stated that in the past seven years Singareni has increased the production from 450 lakh tonnes to 670 lakh tonnes. He also added that coal mining, revenue increase, profits, and expansion of the company also took place highlighting the growth of the company. 

The Minister said that the thermal power plant run by Singareni has the best PLF in the country. He added that the Singareni is providing coal not just within Telangana but also to various thermal power plants in Maharashtra and other South Indian states. Singareni is the only public sector undertaking in the country to contribute 29 percent of the profits, he said. 

KTR also stated that with the efforts of Telangana Govt., Singareni workers, and management, the company was in news for making huge profits. But once the company gets privatized, the only news would be the company’s downfall, he said. 

The Minister stated that the BJP is planning to push Singareni into losses and then privatize it. Similarly, in Andhra Pradesh, the iron ore mines required for the Vizag Steel Plant were not provided, which led to losses of the plant, and that plant will be privatized soon. About 27 requisition letters related to the Steel Plant were still pending with the Union govt, he said. 

KTR stated that the BJP Govt at the center is conspiring to kill the Singareni also in a similar fashion by refusing to allocate the coal mines.

KTR questioned the center as to why the coal mines were not allocated to Singareni directly like the Lignite mines allocated to Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation in Gujarat. “Under BJP Governance, there is one rule for Gujarat and another rule for Telangana! Is Telangana not a part of India?” he asked. 

KTR said that this was not just discrimination against the Singareni organization, it is discrimination against the Telangana state and its people. The people of Telangana will teach a lesson to BJP if they don’t stop this conspiracy, he said. 

Since the Telangana State formation, about 16000 jobs have been created by Singareni. 

Minister KTR stated that the privatization of PSUs was a threat to the future of thousands of youth, Dalits, and tribals. He described the privatization of public sector enterprises by the Center as a move against Dalits and Bahujans in the country. 

This sector plays a key role in jobs creation and privatization of this sector is nothing but diluting the principles of Dr. BR Ambedkar and going against reservations. We will not let this happen at any cost, said Minister KTR. 

Privatization of Singareni will impact the dependent jobs for the families of existing employees, he said. The employees will also lose all kinds of rights and opportunities and the employees will be removed gradually as the mines get closed in a phased manner, he said. 

KTR stated that Singareni supplies coal to about 2000 industries in Telangana and privatization of Singareni will hamper the growth of the Industrial sector in Telangana. 

The Minister opined that the center is not auctioning just the four mines of Singareni, but is auctioning the lives of Singareni workers in the open market. He expressed concern that Singareni will completely disappear soon if privatized.