New Delhi: After National Register of Citizen (NRC) and Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) issue, it's now the disinvestment proposal mooted by the Centre involving Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) that has its direct impact on Assam.
Days after, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman has announced of selling the state-run BPCL to private organisations, both ruling and opposition parties from Assam have expressed concern over the move.
On Saturday, Sitaram said that state-run BPCL along with Air India will be sold by March next. The move for the strategic sale taken by the centre is expected to revive country's economic slow down by raising over Rs 1 lakh crore in the current fiscal.
Sources said that the centre is banking on receipts from investment to increase revenue in a year in which tax collection are reportedly under tremendous pressure.
The decision of disinvestment, however, already created a major controversy with several organisations as well as political parties in Assam are opposing the move because privatizing BPCL will remove the Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) tag from the Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL).
BPCL holds 61.65 per cent share in NRL which is located in Golaghat in Upper Assam district. People of Assam have their sentiments connected with NRL.
The organisations opposing centre's disinvestment move said that NRL, being a subsidiary of BPCL which holds 61.65 per cent of NRL share, will automatically go to private companies after disinvestment of BPCL.
The other two stakeholders in NRL are Oil India (26 per cent) and Assam government (12.35 per cent). The present authorised capital of NRL is Rs 1,000 crore and paid up capital is Rs 735.63 crore.
NRL was set up in Assam under the historic Assam Accord of 1985 for the economic and industrial development of northeastern states. Recognised as a Mini Ratna company, NRL, till it's beginning had paid more than Rs 30,000 crore to the national and state exchequer.
NRL produces LPG, Motor Spirit (MS), Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), Superior Kerosine Oil (SKO), High Speed Diesel (HSD), Nitrogen among others. The NRL was inaugurated by the erstwhile Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee in 1999.
The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president Ripun Bora said that people of Assam will never accept the decision to privatise the NRL.
"Centre's plan to sell its stake in NRL is anti-people. We will never accept such move," said Bora in an exclusive interview to ETV Bharat.
He said that sentiments of the people of Assam is connected with NRL. "NRL is the outcome of Assam agitation in which hundreds of youths have sacrificed their lives," said Bora.
BJP MPs from Assam, however, claimed that Centre will keep the intetest of NRL in mind.
"We have met Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman in New Delhi on Monday and she assured us that the PSU tag of the Petroleum Refinery will be kept intact. She is aware of the sentiment of the people of Assam which is connected with NRL, " said Rajdeep Roy, BJP MP from Assam.
Criticising Congress, Roy said that they (Congress) has been trying to make an issue out of nothing.
"We are also concerned for NRL...but We have ensured that the PSU tag of the NRL does not get diluted and Centre should take the sentiments of the people of Assam in mind while going for disinvestment," Roy said.
The matter has already created a ruckus in Assam with several organisations staging protest demonstration against Centre's privatisation move. The Numaligarh Refinery Employee's Union (NREU) are afraid that once the organisation become privatised, they will be uncertainty over their jobs also.
The influential All Assam Students Union (AASU) which was one of the signatories of the Assam Accord said that it will not allow dilution of the character of NRL.
Interestingly, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has also dashed a letter to the Centre over the issue.
