The Telangana government is seriously examining the prospects of handing over all State government public sector mining activity, including their management, to Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL) as it has expertise in the mining sector.
Further, the State government is considering changing the composition of the SCCL Board, by modifying the necessary Acts, to facilitate inclusion of one or two worker directors, Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao said here on Friday. Handing over the Bayyaram mines to Singareni was also on the cards, he noted.
Regular review
Keeping in mind the employment potential of the underground (UG) mines, the Singareni would also start about half-a-dozen UG mines soon, irrespective of the operational losses involved. The losses of UG mines would be compensated by the open cast (OC) mines.
Admitting that Telangana Boggu Gani Karmika Sangham (TBGKS) had committed some mistakes in its first term, Mr. Chandrasekhar Rao said they would not be repeated this time and he would review the functioning of Singareni every month.
Thanking the workers for reposing faith in the TRS affiliated trade union TBGKS and through it in the TRS Government, Mr. Chandrasekhar Rao said the promises he made the other day as the party president would be fulfilled and was giving an assurance on them now as the Chief Minister.
‘A temporary hurdle’
On the stay order issued by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Kaleshwaram Project work, the Chief Minister said it was only a temporary hurdle and they would not hold up the project for long. “We know that former deputy chief minister Damodar Raj Narsimha was behind a party activist moving the Green Tribunal. Or else, how can an ordinary person can bear the counsel fee of ₹6 lakh per day for arguing the case,” the Chief Minister said.
Reacting to Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s suggestion to States to reduce taxes on petroleum fuel oils to bring down the prices of petrol and diesel, Mr. Chandrasekhar Rao hit back saying that he should suggest it to the BJP-ruled States to do so first.