Protests to greet Modi in Telangana on Saturday

Hyderabad: Even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in Visakhapatnam on Friday, starting his short tour of the Telugu States, protests against his visit to Telangana on Saturday grew louder with several organisations staging protests on Friday and others calling for more protests on Saturday. In Peddapalli district, where the Ramagundam Fertilizers and Chemicals Limited […]

Hyderabad: Even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in Visakhapatnam on Friday, starting his short tour of the Telugu States, protests against his visit to Telangana on Saturday grew louder with several organisations staging protests on Friday and others calling for more protests on Saturday.

In Peddapalli district, where the Ramagundam Fertilizers and Chemicals Limited is located, and where Modi is slated to address a public meeting on Saturday, Singareni trade unions, which have decided to observe a Ramagundam coal belt area bandh on Saturday, took out bike rallies in Godavarikhani town on Friday. Telangana Boggu Ghani Karmika Sangham (TBGKS), AITUC and the CPI took out the rallies, raising slogans saying ‘Modi Go Back’.

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All Left parties, national trade unions and Singareni employees have also decided to block the PM’s tour to RFCL in protest against privatization of coal blocks and the anti-workers policies of the Centre. Left wing student union AISF gave a call for closure of all educational institutions in the erstwhile Karimnagar district on Saturday, while AITUC activists staged a protest and burnt an effigy of Modi at Kaman Chowk on Friday.

On the other hand, the All India Students’ Federation (AISF) announced that it would block Modi’s tour, with AISF Hanamkonda District General Secretary B. Santosh saying that Modi had no right to enter Telangana without implementing assurances made in the AP Reorganisation Act.

All set for RFCL dedication

Peddapalli: Meanwhile, all arrangements are in place for the dedication of the RFCL to the nation.

Modi is expected to reach the Ramagundam coal belt town at 3.30 pm by helicopter and tour the RFCL plant for half an hour before heading to the Mahatma Gandhi stadium in NTPC Township at 4.15 pm where he will dedicate the plant to the nation. He is also slated to address a public meeting before returning to Hyderabad.

The RFCL, which started commercial production of urea on March 22, 2021, was established by the Fertiliser Corporation of India in Ramagundam in 1970. However, it was closed in 1992 due to debts. In 2014, a decision was taken to revive the unit through partnership of both Central and State governments to cater to fertiliser needs of South India.

While both National Fertilisers Limited and Engineers India Limited have 26 percent share, Fertiliser Corporation of India Limited and the Telangana government have a 11 percent share each. Gas Authority of India Limited, which is supplying gas to the plant, holds 14.3 percent share and the remaining 11.7 percent share is owned by Denmark-based company Haldor Topsoe.