JAC Marks 2,000 Days of Protest Against Vizag Steel Plant Privatisation
The Joint Action Committee opposing privatisation of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant observed 2,000 days of protest, reiterating demands for captive mines, a SAIL merger and worker reinstatement.
The all-party Joint Action Committee (JAC) campaigning against the privatisation of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant marked 2,000 days of its agitation on Sunday, gathering at the Gandhi statue near the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation office.
Leaders of the committee said workers and residents were ready for further struggles to safeguard the plant and urged that the protests be intensified. The movement, they noted, began on April 2, 2021, in solidarity with workers demonstrating at Kurmannapalem, and continued through the COVID-19 period.
Among those who addressed the occasion were JAC chairman M. Jaggu Naidu and vice-chairman B. Nagabhushanam. The committee pressed for the plant to be given captive mines or merged with the Steel Authority of India Limited, and called for operations at full capacity.
The leaders also sought the reinstatement of contract workers. They alleged that around 6,000 contract workers had been removed from service and that roughly 2,000 employees had opted for voluntary retirement.
Further, the JAC claimed that the ₹11,400-crore package announced for the plant had not been directed towards its development, workers' salaries, equipment repairs or raw material procurement. It demanded that the plant's land not be allotted to other organisations.