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Telangana cabinet minister KT Rama Rao has slammed the Centre for selling PSU assets in the state. He asked the union government to withdraw plans of selling PSU assets. Rao, Minister for IT and Industries has written a letter to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman suggesting the Centre explore the possibilities of reviving and strengthening the Public Sector Undertakings, instead of selling them.
"If it is not feasible then the State Government should be given an opportunity to set up new industrial units in such lands," the Telangana minister added.
The Central Government's plans to sell PSUs are nothing but making a mockery of the state government's rights, KTR added in the letter.
Lashing out at PM Modi-led central government for attempting to sell state-owned assets in the guise of disinvestment, KTR sought to know under what provisions or rights, the Centre was contemplating the sale of PSUs set up in different states.
"It was unfortunate that the Modi Government did not provide job opportunities to the unemployed youth. If the PSUs were reopened, they would provide direct employment to thousands and indirectly millions would be benefited," he said.
The BJP Government was selling Hindustan Cables Limited, Hindustan Fluorocarbons Limited, Indian Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Limited, HMT, Cement Corporation of India Limited (CCI), and Ordinance factories in Telangana as part of its disinvestment plans, he alleged.
"The state governments had allotted about 7,200 acres of land to these six companies. The value of these lands would be nearly ₹5,000 crore according to governments rates and as per open market prices, the value could be over ₹40,000 crore," he claimed.
KTR said that the state government had allotted lands to these companies at marginal prices and in a few cases, they were offered for free, since setting up of these units would generate employment for local people, besides facilitating industrial development.
When the Telangana government urged the Central Government to allot lands for the construction of Skyways to improve transportation in Hyderabad, the Center demanded compensation as per market price, he said.
"In this context, how can the Central Government sell the lands that were allotted by the State Government for setting up PSUs," the Minister questioned.
"I appeal to the Union Government to reconsider these plans, failing which Telangana Government will strongly obstruct the moves," the minister added.
