KTR to hold 'maha dharna' on April 8 against Centre's decision to auction SCCL mines

Hyderabad: BRS working president and IT minister K.T. Rama Rao on Thursday picked April 8, the day Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits the city, to hold a 'maha dharna' against the Centre’s decision to auction coal mines of Singareni Collieries and Company Limited (SCCL).

"BRS leaders and activists, along with Singareni employees, will protest against the Centre in Mancherial, Kothagudem, Ramagundam on April 8," Rama Rao said in a media statement.

He demanded that the auction of the mines in Sattupalli Block 3, Shravanpalli and Penagadapa, which began on March 29 and would continue to May 30, be rolled back.  He demanded that SCCL be allocated the mines without auction.
In the media statement, Rama Rao referred to the economic significance of the SCCL, the Centre’s “conspiracy” to impede Telangana’s growth by privatising SCCL, the “disastrous impact of its privatisation” on various sections.

Rama Rao alleged that the Centre was conspiring to push the profitable SCCL
into losses by not allocating it coal mines and insisting that it purchase them in an auction. He alleged that the Vizag Steel Plant (VSP) was similarly pushed into losses by not allocating it captive mines.

He said BRS president and Chief Minister Chandrashekar Rao had written to the Centre stating that the SCCL needed allocation of coal mines; Singareni employees had placed a similar demand. He pointed out that private firms had not participated in the earlier auction the mines.

He said a large number of lignite mines were allocated to the Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation (GMDC) following the nomination method. Rama Rao alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was generous towards Gujarat but was discriminating progressive Telangana. He said that Modi who visited Ramagundam on November 11, 2022, had assured that Sinagreni would not be privatised but did not stand by his promise.

Rama Rao said that privatising SCCL would affect the CM's determination to provide 24-hour free electricity to farmers. He said that the Centre was not able to digest the appreciation the Kaleshwaram lift irrigation project had been receiving and was plotting to deprive it of power supply by privatising SCCL.