KTR calls for protests over Singareni mines during PM Modi's Telangana visit

KTR accused the Modi government of making veiled attempts to privatize SCCL, a state-owned coal mining company

The ruling party in Telangana, the BRS, has called for protests on Saturday, the day of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the state.

The call for Maha Dharna was given by BRS working president and minister K T Rama Rao in continuation of the state's opposition to the “central government’s decision to auction Singareni Collieries Company Limited coal mines.”

KTR accused the Modi government of making veiled attempts to privatize the company.

SCCL is a coal mining company, with operations in north Telangana, jointly owned by the Governments of Telangana and India on a 51:49 equity basis.

"BRS leaders, activists along with Singareni employees will protest against the centre, in Mancherial, Kothagudem, Ramagundam on April 8," KTR said in a statement on Thursday.

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Stating that the centre issued a notification to auction the mines in Sathupalli Block 3, Shravan Palli, Penagadapa, KTR demanded that the auctioning process, scheduled to be conducted from March 29 to May 30, be rolled back.

The K Chandrashekar Rao government is demanding that coal mines needed for SCCL should be allocated to the company without auction.

PM Modi is scheduled to visit Secunderabad on Saturday to flag off the Vande Bharat Express to Tirupati, inaugurate 13 new MMTS services in the suburban section of Hyderabad – Secunderabad twin city region, lay the foundation stone for redevelopment of Secunderabad Railway Station at a cost of Rs 720 crore and etc programmes.

KTR said that Modi, who visited Ramagundam on November 11, 2022, assured that Sinagreni would not be privatized. “But the PM did not stand by his promise,” said the minister, seeking Modi's response during his visit to the State.

KTR asked if anyone from the center will dare “to reason the need for privatizing SCCL when it is setting records in terms of production, profits and Plant Load Factor (PLF).”

The minister recalled that a large number of Lignite mines were allocated to Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation (GMDC) following the nomination method. However, KTR said that the same request to allocate mines to SCCL was not considered by the centre. The minister said that Prime Minister "Modi, who was generous towards Gujarat, discriminated progressive Telangana."

The BRS’s working president said that the centre is conspiring to push Singareni, which is currently reaping profits, into losses by not allocating the coal mines. Stating that the centre sold many Public Sector Units which made profits, he said that Vizag Steel Plant (VSP) in Andhra Pradesh was pushed into losses by not allocating mines to it. KTR stated that Telangana will strongly oppose the center’s conspiracy.