Ever since the Central Government announced its plan of privatising the Visakha Steel Plant, a lot of chaos has ensued in the state of AP, and especially in Visakhapatnam. People have started to protest against the decision, and recently, people like Ganta Srinivasa Rao have also resigned in retaliation to this idea.
Considering the chaos, and the fact that Visakha Steel Plant is a matter of pride and honor to the people of the port city, Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, requesting the Central Government to reconsider its decision and to not privatise the Steel Plant.
The Central Government has decided to withdraw its investments in the Visakha Steel Plant, as it is more than capable of attracting potential investments, given that it has a lot of value on its own. The Center took this decision, keeping in mind the fact that the Center has faced many losses in the past one year, when it came to investing in public sectors.
The steel plant is stretched over 19,700 acres of land, whose values will be anywhere above Rs. 1 Lakh Crores. Over 20,000 permanent employees are dependent on the steel plant for their livelihood, and thousands of others are dependent on the steel plant indirectly, for their livelihoods.
It is now to be seen if the Center will back down on its decision – as the people of Visakha have fought for the steel plant for decades – and keep the steel plant as a government organisation, or if the Center will go ahead and privatise it.