&w=3840&q=100)
YS Sharmila slams BJP over privatisation plans for Vizag Steel Plant
Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) President YS Sharmila has criticised the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP)-led Andhra Pradesh government for allegedly making decisions to "privatise" the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP).
The APCC Chief said that Congress condemned the decision of the Centre, asserting that the party would "fight to the death" if it came to saving the Visakha steel.
Speaking to ANI on Thursday, YS Sharmila said, "Yesterday, on behalf of the Congress party, I, the party President of Andhra Pradesh, was there at Visakhapatnam Steel Plant for an indefinite strike because 2000 employees of the plant were terminated without a cause or reason. Most of the 2000 people who were terminated from the plant are people who happened to have given their land for the construction of the plant."
The APCC Chief claimed that the BJP "deliberately" wants the plant to run into losses in order to privatise it.
"If the project stands today, it is because many people like them donated land to the Vishakhapatnam Steel. Today, the BJP deliberately wants Visakhapatnam Steel to run into losses so that they can privatise it and give it to people like Adani. The Congress party is against this. Yesterday, we were there, demanding that all 2000 people be reinstated. Today, we held a press meeting in Vijayawada to question the state government as to why they are extending support for this move by the central government," YS Sharmila said.
"In 2021, the BJP announced that they are willing to privatise Visakha Steel, they have not gone back on that. In a recent statement, the Centre government clarified that the decision remains. The Congress party seriously condemns this and stands against it, and we will fight to the death, if it comes to that, for saving the Visakha steel," she said.
Sharmila on Wednesday sat on a hunger strike in support of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP) workers. She alleged that around 2,000 contract workers were dismissed without proper procedure or justification.
She further claimed that until 2014, the VSP was a profitable enterprise, generating Rs 1,000 crore in profit, but it now faces a debt of Rs 28,000 crore.
Speaking to reporters, the Congress leader said, "Andhra Pradesh Congress is here in Visakhapatnam Steel. We are going on an indefinite hunger strike because the management of VSP has terminated 2000 employees without any cause or proper procedure. The reason behind this is to kill this plant... Until 2014, this plant yielded a profit of Rs 1000 crores, but now, it stands on a debt of Rs 28000 crores...
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
20 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Samruddhi Mahamarg opens fully, cuts down travel time from Mumbai to Nagpur by 9 hours
The Hindu Hridaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg is now open end to end after the 76-kilometre leg between Igatpuri and Amane (Thane) was inaugurated by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday, providing a seamless 701-kilometre connectivity from Mumbai to Nagpur. The six-lane expressway that is now fully operational will reduce the travel time between the two cities by half from 17 hours to around eight hours. The event organised at Igatpuri was also attended by Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar and other ministers of the Mahayuti government. The completion of the last leg brings the entire project to realisation after decades of intricate engineering issues, political will and huge investments. The project was initially estimated at Rs 55,500 crore, but as it crossed various technical and logistical barriers and the project cost rose to over Rs 61,000 crore. At the inauguration, Fadnavis, who initially conceptualised the project in his first tenure as a CM, said, 'This is not merely a road, it is a corridor of Maharashtra's economy. It directly connects 24 districts with JNPT and paves the way for growth, transportation, logistics and opportunities in agriculture, tourism and industrial development.' The final stretch of the corridor passing through Nashik and Thane districts had some of the most challenging construction tasks. The 76-kilometre section comprises five twin tunnels of 10.73 kilometres in length, including the broadest tunnel in the country near Igatpuri that is 8 km long and 17.61 metres wide. It also has India's first fire-fighting system in a tunnel. As many as 17 viaducts with an aggregate length of more than 10.56 kilometers had to be built in hilly and forested territory. 'Because of a thick forest block, absence of access roads, hilly terrain and high rainfall in Igatpuri, we had to work with utmost caution. Nevertheless, we adopted the best safety measures to facilitate a safe working environment,' said K Mallikharjuna Rao, Business Unit Head, Hydro and Underground, Afcons Infrastructure Ltd, who were a part of construction of the twin tunnels. This section also has interchanges at Igatpuri, Khutghar and Amane. More than 60 low and high voltage power lines had to be shifted for the construction along with the new rail overbridge. The road now provides a safer route to the scary Kasara Ghat and shortens the journey time from Igatpuri to Kasara to eight minutes. The Samruddhi Mahamarg is a greenfield expressway designed by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) that passes through 392 villages in 26 talukas in 10 districts. It directly links Nagpur, Wardha, Amravati, Washim, Buldhana, Jalna, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Ahilyanagar, Nashik and Thane and indirectly serves many others such as Chandrapur, Nanded, Dhule, Palghar and Raigad. The highest speed limit is fixed at 120 kmph on flat terrain and 100 kmph in ghat sections. Shinde said, 'We initiated the project in our term and completed it in our term only. This access control road will prove to be a game changer in economic activity between Mumbai and Vidarbha. Earlier, the farmer who used to travel for three days to come to Mumbai with farm produce now is able to reach the same day.' Besides its huge size, the expressway has been built focusing on conservation and intelligent engineering, according to MSRDC officials. For the conservation of wildlife, 92 overpasses and eight underpasses have been constructed for the safe passage of animals. Over 3.3 million trees have been transplanted with native species and 1,000 farm ponds have been created along the road to support agriculture in the regions. Fadnavis also highlighted advanced features such as temperature sensitive fire fighting systems, rainwater harvesting systems and well designed interchanges. 'The fire fighting system and temperature sensitive surfaces are designed such that they get activated when temperatures rise above 60 degrees Celsius and self-deactivates when the temperature goes below 30 degrees Celsius,' he said. The expressway will also facilitate the transportation of goods between MIHAN in Nagpur and JNPT in Mumbai with faster and more reliable cargo movement. In future, there are proposals for 200 MW of solar power generation along the route, with 22 facility centres being planned to benefit travellers. A gas pipeline from Konkan to Nagpur through this corridor is also planned that will ensure constant fuel supply to industries along this route. After Samruddhi Mahamarg, the government is now set to apply the model of access controlled expressways to other proposed corridors such as the Mumbai-Pune expressway missing link and Shaktipeeth Mahamarg, thereby increasing the network of expressways across the state. 'We are constructing an access control grid so that one is able to reach any corner of the state to other within 8 to 10 hours only,' Shinde added. In his address, Deputy CM Ajit Pawar said, 'When the project started, everyone opposed it, some even organised protests… The estimated amount was Rs 55,500 crore, but owing to factors, it has crossed Rs 61,000 crore now. But the magnitude of this achievement for the state is huge.'
Time of India
27 minutes ago
- Time of India
Rahul Gandhi faces backlash for ‘langda ghoda' remark; disability rights group files protest
JAIPUR: Leader of Opposition 's remarks on underperforming Congress workers made at a party meeting in Bhopal on Tuesday seems to have boomeranged. While his party workers may have taken the remark in their stride, an advocacy group for specially-abled persons has taken a stand against Rahul for calling non-performing Congress persons "langda ghoda" or lame horse. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The Divyang Adhikar Mahasangh, a Jaipur-based advocacy group, formally registered a protest over Rahul's use of ableist language and wrote to the chief commissioner for persons with disabilities, Govt of India, and the chief election commissioner (CEC), on Wednesday. Mahasangh national president Hemant Bhai Goyal said that while addressing the Congress meeting in Bhopal, Rahul disparagingly said he was adding a third category of horses – the "langda ghoda" (lame horse) – to the known two types used for races and weddings. "He further stressed on retiring the lame horse," Goyal said, condemning the remarks as derogatory and harmful to the dignity of persons with disabilities (PwDs). This choice of words, Goyal argued not only disrespects the rights of PwDs but also violates the spirit of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016. "The language used by a Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha should reflect respect and understanding for all sections of the society, especially those who are most vulnerable," Goyal said. "His comments have deeply hurt the sentiments of millions of PwDs and their families across the country," he claimed. Goyal further pointed ECI's 2023 guidelines issued for political parties which state that "common examples of ableist language are words like dumb (gunga), retarded (pagal, sirphira), blind (andha, kana), deaf (behra), lame (langda, lula, apahij), etc. It is necessary to avoid usage of such derogatory language". Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The backlash from Rahul's comments has ignited a broader conversation about the responsibility of public figures to use language that promotes inclusivity and respect for all individuals, regardless of their physical abilities. "Shouldn't we all strive to eliminate terms that perpetuate stereotypes and insults towards the specially-abled community?" Goyal asked, while demanding action against Rahul.
Time of India
27 minutes ago
- Time of India
Deputy commissioner of Uttara Kannada urges for peaceful Bakrid celebrations
Karwar: Deputy commissioner of Uttara Kannada, K Lakshmipriya, urged leaders of all communities to celebrate the Bakrid festival, a symbol of sacrifice, peacefully and harmoniously in the district. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now She spoke on Thursday while presiding over a district-level harmony meeting organised by the district administration and police department, at the district police office auditorium, in view of the Bakrid festival. The DC instructed that the festival be celebrated in a traditional manner without disturbing law and order or hurting religious sentiments. She assured that the district administration will take precautionary measures for this purpose. She also directed the officials of the urban development department to prioritise waste disposal during Bakrid, and to manage it systematically. Additionally, officials from the animal husbandry and revenue departments were instructed to provide all necessary support to the police department. To prevent illegal cattle transportation, 24 checkposts have been set up by the police department, and offenders involved in such activities can face up to 7 years of imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs 10 lakh. The DC advised public not to believe any fake news on social media that could incite religious sentiments, and encouraged them to contact the district administration and police control rooms for accurate information. She urged people of all faiths to engage in peaceful and harmonious celebrations of Bakrid. District police superintendent Narayan M mentioned that peace meetings have been conducted in all police station jurisdictions to maintain peace and harmony during Bakrid. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now CCTV installations and appropriate security arrangements have been made at prayer venues across the district, and selected locations have also been equipped with CCTVs. Social media platforms are being monitored 24/7 to prevent the spread of fake news. A heightened police presence has been arranged for four days during Bakrid. He warned against inflammatory speeches and urged the public to immediately inform the nearest police station of any law violations, assuring strict action against offenders. Leaders of Hindu and Muslim organisations present at the meeting emphasised that the district is known for its peace, and will not allow any untoward incidents during Bakrid. They committed to celebrating the festival peacefully and harmoniously, and assured continuous support to the district administration for maintaining a peaceful environment.
