VISAKHAPATNAM: Visakha Ukku Parirakshana Porata Committee leaders are in New Delhi to mobilise support of the national parties and leaders. The delegation led by committee chairmen Ch Narasinga Rao, D Adinarayana and Mantri Rajasekha on Wednesday met NCP leader Sharad Pawar, DMK MP Shanumugam and BSP MP Rami Gautam. They also held meetings with CPI leaders K Narayana and Ramakrishna and CPM leader Madhu.
Speaking to TNIE, Adinarayana said the two-day maha dharna in Delhi received very good response and the steel agitation got national attention. He said Sharad Pawar and other leaders whom they met were ready to support the steel plant agitation. “The Union government was deliberately adjourning both houses of Parliament to avoid discussion on the steel plant and other public issues. It is also not giving proper reply to the notices in the Houses,” he said.
He said they were trying to get the appointment of president Ramnadh Kovind and Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu to seek their intervention to solve the steel plant issue. Adinarayana said the national leaders had advised them to bring pressure on the State government to arrange a meeting with the Prime Minister with all MPs from the state to find a solution as was done by the then TDP leader Yerran Naidu in 1998. All opposition leaders were ready to join if the MPs from the state gave notice to presiding officers in both the Houses of Parliament. The national leaders were of the opinion that if a PSU like Vizag Steel Plant is privatised, the Centre will go on a privatisation spree and it has to be stalled by means. The BSP leader was of the opinion that if PSUs are privatised, the SC and ST youth will be deprived of their reservation.
Adinarayana said they met leaders of 16 parties till now and were planning to meet some more leaders.
Meanwhile, the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), which issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) on July 7 for engagement of a transaction advisor and a legal advisor for 100 per cent strategic disinvestment of RINL and RINL’s stake in its subsidiaries/ joint ventures, has made certain changes in clauses following suggestions received at the pre-bid meeting. A new sunset clause was inserted in the RFP. As per the clause, the contract will be valid for three years and may be extended by one more year, if necessary. It also clarified that RFP is for RINL and its JV/subsidiaries. No separate transaction was envisaged for JV/ subsidiaries, it said. It also declined to change the performance bank guarantee of `1 crore.