Visakhapatnam: Expressing solidarity with Ukku agitators at the relay hunger strike camp, Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) chief YS sharmila warned the Union government that an indefinite strike would be launched if removed workers were not reinstated at Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP).

Expressing solidarity with Ukku agitators who are on a relay hunger strike at Kurmannapalem, the Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) chief YS Sharmila Reddy extended support to VSP workers.

Speaking on the occasion, she mentioned that the Congress party would support the strike scheduled on May 20. Sharmila said that the plant was established during the Congress party’s rule and the party will safeguard the plant at any cost.

The BJP government claimed that they were extending financial support to the RINL by providing financial aid of Rs.11,000 crore, the APCC chief said, adding that the Union government announced a special package on one hand and cleared bank loans on the other.

Further, Sharmila mentioned that opposing the decision to privatise the VSP, the trade unions are staging protests from January 2021. She congratulated the union leaders and workers for continuing the hunger strike with determination despite the obstacles they came across. The APCC chief recalled that the VSP had a bright future under the Congress regime till 2014. However, the plant incurred losses during the BJP’s rule. The BJP government conspired to kill the plant to benefit the Adani Group, she alleged. Sharmila alleged that there is a conspiracy to hand over the assets of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant worth Rs.4 lakh crore to Adani at a throw away price.

She pointed out that the process of laying off workers has been going on for the last six months and that there were 34,000 employees in the plant in the Congress regime.

The employees have been laid off without any reason in these 11 years, she expressed concern. “BJP ministers say that there is no privatization of the VSP, but higher officials of the Central government say there is no change in the privatisation decision. They say that the decision taken in 2021 will continue, which of these announcements are true?” questioned the APCC chief.

The APCC chief objected that the workers did not get a single rupee of the Rs.11,000 crore financial assistance given to the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant by the Centre.

She demanded that the 2,000 people who were laid off at the steel plant should be immediately reinstated, the steel plant should be allocated its own mines, and be merged with SAIL to overcome losses.

Along with the Ukku agitators, Sharmila participated in the relay hunger strike for six hours in Visakhapatnam.