ANGUL: The district Congress on Sunday threatened to resort to economic blockade in Angul to protest over closure of Talcher Thermal Power Station (TTPS). Slamming both the Central and State governments, the party’s district president Biplab Jena said the closure of TTPS has not only affected over 30,000 people who depended on the plant directly or indirectly for their livelihood but also deprived the State of cheap electricity.
Alleging that the unwarranted closure of the plant has cleared the path for its privatisation, Biplab said the NDA government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has sold many public sector industries in the last seven years. He further claimed that the Centre has planned to sell the plant’s machinery to South Africa. The Congress leader questioned why TTPS was not given environmental clearance while 162 industries in the district received the same till the end of 2024.
“The Congress will submit a memorandum to the President through Angul Collector to restore the power plant and execute its expansion project. If the demand is not met, the party will not allow transportation of coal from the district during the economic blockade,” he added.