Ramagundam will turn into volcano if Centre privatizes Singareni: KTR

KT Rama Rao said Ramagundam would turn into a volcano and witness massive agitations if the Centre attempted to sell SCCL

Peddapalli: IT Minister KT Rama Rao on Monday said Ramagundam would turn into a volcano and witness massive agitations if the Centre attempted to sell the Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL).

“Singareni is not just a company. It is the lifeline of Telangana. There is no question of keeping quiet if the Centre tries to privatize the company. Ramagundam will become a volcano,” he said at a public meeting in Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium after laying the foundation for developmental works worth Rs.300 crore in Ramagundam Municipal Corporation.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi was lying on the privatization of public sector units. Only a few people might have spoke against the privatization of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant. But this did not mean that the Centre would be allowed to privatize Singareni. The State was ready to go to any extent to protect the
SCCL, he said.

Pointing out that during his recent visit to Ramagundam, Modi had stated that the Centre had no plans to privatize Singareni, Rama Rao said the very next day, four coal blocks were put up for auction.

Though the State government had asked for coal blocks to be allocated to SCCL, the Centre had refused and instead asked SCCL to participate in the auction. At the same time, Modi had granted four coal blocks to the Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation. If the Centre was sincere, the coal blocks should be allocated to SCCL on nomination basis, he said.