THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After Trivandrum airport, the state government would seek the right to operate the public sector company, Hindustan Newsprint Limited (HNL). Speaking to Express, N Sasidharan Nair, Public Sector Restructuring and Internal Audit Board (RIAB), chairman, said that the state government has given it permission to approach the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) that had liquidated the Hindustan Paper Corporation, the holding company of Hindustan Newsprint Limited (HNL), Kottayam.
He said that the state government was preparing to hold negotiation with the liquidator. RIAB, meanwhile, had entrusted a private consultant to prepare a proposal to approach the liquidator. The consultancy has already estimated HNL’s assets. The proposal, though, is subject to the demands put forward by the liquidator. The liquidator was expected to ask the state government to pay equal to the net worth of the company.
“The state was forced to approach the NCLT after the Tribunal appointed liquidator did not consider the request placed by the state government for its takeover of the PSU. Considering the fact that the state had given around 700 acres of prime industrial land to HNL to set up necessary infrastructure as part of promoting industry in the state, it is important for the state to get possession of the stakes of the company proposed for disinvestment by the Centre,” said one of the officials.
With the Centre off loading its stakes in major PSUs in the state, rapidly, the state government is finding it tough to retain the PSUs including the Trivandrum airport, for which the state government had given vast tracts of land. Though the state has almost reached an understanding with the Centre to take over Instrumentation Limited in Kerala, the Centre in the last minute insisted the state to pay the price of 123.12 acres of land the state had given to the company free.