DMK flays Centre's "privatisation bid" in TN Assembly

DMK legislators today urged the Tamil Nadu government to take steps to prevent the Centre's reported bid to "privatise" Kamarajar Port here and the Ordnance Factory in Tiruchirappalli.

While S Sudarsanam (Madhavaram MLA) opposed the reported move to privatise Kamarajar Port, Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi (Tiruverumbur) urged the government to put pressure on the Centre against privatising the Ordnance Factory.

Responding to the port issue,Chief Minister Edappadi K Palanisamy said no report has been received either from Kamarajar Port or the Shipping Ministry.

He said only newspaper reports of June 19 had said that the Centre was going in for a "100 per cent sale" of its stake in the port.

"Steps are being taken to get a detailed report on this issue from the Union Shipping Ministry," he said.

Industries Minister M C Sampath said Niti Aayog had only sent a letter to the management of the Tiruchirappalli based factory to look into the feasibility of a Public-Private Partnership model for it.

Based on this, the employees have announced a protest on June 27 against any move to privatise it, he said.

However, he assured that the Centre "has not taken any decision," on privatising the 50-year-old plant.

"All steps will be taken" to stop the reported bid to privatise the Tiruchirappalli-based factory.

Elaborating, he said it was a "general decision," of the Centre to go in for either privatisation or Public Private Partnership with regard to loss-making or less profitable PSUs.