The Confederation of Puducherry Government Employees’ Association (CPGEA) has hit out at the management of the Pondicherry Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) for allowing private players to manage the boating facility near the Chunnambar Water Sports Complex.
The objective of the move, the association members said, appeared to be to plug the revenues for the PTDC-operated boat house at Chunnambar and gradually privatise or wind up the operations.
In a statement on Tuesday, association honorary president C.H. Balamohan said the boat house had been making profits. It earned ₹1 crore a month. The government had been trying to end PTDC’s monopoly and sought to divert the revenue to a private player.
‘Pressure from MLAs’
The confederation alleged that the management had yielded to pressure from ruling party MLAs in allowing private operators, he said.
Mr. Balamohan accused the management of violating the rules in appointing a junior engine driver as assistant manager of the boat house.
The appointment had been made with the motive to help private players, he said. The government should withdraw the approval granted to private players and announce a policy decision that boating and other recreational activities at Chunnambar would continue to be the monopoly of the PTDC, he said.
Any failure to rectify the mistakes would lead to a mass agitation, the confederation said.
Mr. Balamohan urged the government to fill the existing 89 vacancies in PTDC in a transparent manner. There should not be any room for back door entry, he added.