J Jayalalithaa writes to Manmohan Singh on Navaratna PSU disinvestment issue

CHENNAI: As the strike by employees of Neyveli Lignite Corporation entered fourth day, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Sunday asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to direct SEBI to quickly work out modalities on offering five per cent disinvestment in the Navaratna PSU to any of the state government undertakings.


"The Government of India should immediately accept my proposal to sell the minimum required equity under the relevant regulations to state Public Sector Undertakings of Tamil Nadu and also direct SEBI to quickly work out modalities of such a transaction", Jayalalithaa said in a letter sent to Singh.

She also voiced concern that due to labour unrest the entire South may be affected due to shortage of power.

The strike could have a "crippling impact" on the power availability in the state and in the hard work done by the Government to stabilise the power situation", she said.

"The delay on the part of the Centre will put the people of Tamil Nadu to extreme hardship, which I have tried very hard to avert by offering you a number of feasible alternatives to avoid disinvestment in NLC", she said.

Noting that Tamil Nadu has been a power deficit state, she said, "my Government has strained every nerve" to resolve the power crisis.

"The cumulative power shortage of 4000 MW left by the lassitude of the previous Government had to be tackled by my Government by systematically planning, executing and commissioning new projects.", she said.

Observing that several power projects -- Mettur Thermal Power project of 600 MW capacity, two units of the Thermal Power Project at Vallur of 500 MW capacity each and the North Chennai Thermal Power Project Unit II of 600 MW capacity, began "generating power", she said, "Tamil Nadu is now able to manage the power situation with least inconvenience to the people and industry". MORE PTI VIJ RC DV 07071149 NNNN