No going back on privatisation of steel plant, asserts GVL

Visakhapatnam: The cat is finally out of bag. The BJP has made it clear that there is no question of going back on privatisation of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP). It also made it clear that the state leaders' visit to Delhi and submitting representations to Union Ministers was nothing but playing to the gallery. Addressing the media here on Wednesday, party's Rajya Sabha member GVL Narasimha Rao wondered how come the BJP's decision to go in for disinvestment of VSP is looked down upon when the proposal is meant for growth. "Continuing VSP as a PSU will only benefit a certain section of political parties and corrupt officials. What is wrong in privatising the plant if it only increases its efficiency and growth?" the MP said.

He said that it takes a long time to disinvest Visakhapatnam Steel Plant.

Speaking about the elections, the MP said that the BJP's presence has improved in the State comparatively. "Even in the recently-concluded panchayat elections, the BJP-JSP alliance yielded desirable results. If nominations were filed now, we would have given a tough fight in the municipal elections. Going forward, we will focus on strengthening the party's presence in Andhra Pradesh," Narasimha Rao emphasised.

He said the BJP will focus on contesting for the by-election in Tirupati. Despite the Centre according top priority to Andhra Pradesh in sanctioning funds among the southern States, the regional parties have made 'good use' of the Central government schemes by rechristening them to gain political mileage. "The Union government is keen on developing infrastructure across the country. Even in this, AP is given special treatment as the State will get Rs 8.17 lakh crore funds as a part of infrastructure development projects, including road and railways."

On Special Category Status, he said except the political parties using the 'tag' to gain political advantage, SCS is not much beneficial but for some government schemes.