The Hindu : New Delhi News : Khurana dares Sheila on DJB privatisation

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Dec 24, 2004

New Delhi

New Delhi

Khurana dares Sheila on DJB privatisation

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, DEC. 23. The Bharatiya Janata Party leader, Madan Lal Khurana, today demanded that the Delhi Chief Minister, Sheila Dikshit, make public all the documents related to privatisation of the Delhi Jal Board.

Addressing a press conference, second in the series of three planned by him on this issue, Mr. Khurana alleged that with elections over, Ms. Dikshit was all set to hand over the DJB to a foreign company at the instance of the World Bank.

Giving a list of five foreign companies -- Degremont, Vivendi and Sears from France, Bectel of the U.S. and Thames from Germany -- Mr. Khurana claimed he had "access" to official documents which proved beyond doubt that DJB would be sold out to one of these multinationals.

Demanding that Ms. Dikshit withdraw the entire process of privatisation and the recent price hike within 10 days, Mr. Khurana said: "Otherwise, I would disclose the name of the foreign company on January 5." He alleged that at the instance of the World Bank, the DJB was giving all major contracts to these companies. "The shocking part is that these companies have been accused of adopting corrupt practices the world over," he alleged.

Referring to the investigative reports brought out by the U.S.-based non-government organisation -- Public Citizen Water for All -- Mr. Khurana gave examples of alleged corrupt practices adopted by these companies. "What is the guarantee that these foreign companies would not adopt corrupt practices in Delhi and make drinking water a scare commodity as they have done elsewhere," he asked.

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