The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Protests over ‘land alienation’ for Union Minister’s project

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Wednesday, Mar 26, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Protests over ‘land alienation’ for Union Minister’s project

Special Correspondent

State rapped for not inviting global tenders
‘Only 40 p.c. SW hostels inmates attending school’

HYDERABAD: The Telugu Desam Party protested in the Assembly on Tuesday a move by the State government to alienate 1,200 acres of land near Machilipatnam port for a thermal power plant proposed reportedly by Union Minister of State for Mines T. Subbarami Reddy.

Request being examined

Power Minister Mohammed Ali Shabbir, however, informed the House during question hour that the request for land was being examined.

He said M/s Thermal Powertech Corporation (India) Limited sought the land as a ‘merchant plant’ under provisions of the energy policy enacted by Parliament in 2003.

Any private player could apply for permission to set up such plants.

Except alienating land and signing Power Purchase Agreements, the State government had no other role to play in the projects.

TDP deputy leader T. Devender Goud criticised the government for not inviting global tenders for the project.

No competition

It wants to sanction the project to the benefit of the Union Minister after ensuring that there is no competition, he alleged.

Replying to a different question, Rural Development Minister G. Chinna Reddy expressed the government’s willingness for a social audit of works taken up under Indira Prabha for development of lands distributed to poor.

Hostel attendance

Social Welfare Minister P. Subhashchandra Bose said in a response to a question by Nomula Narasimhaiah (CPI-M) that hostel welfare officers regularly verified attendance of children admitted to social welfare (SW) hostels in schools where they studied.

Mr. Narasimhaiah alleged that only 30 to 40 per cent inmates of hostels went to schools.

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