Brandix violated MoU

Visakhapatnam: Local MLA and BJP floor leader in the Assembly P Vishnu Kumar Raju alleged that the Brandix India Apparel City violated the MoU it entered with the government with regard to employment.
Talking to this correspondent here on Wednesday, the MLA who raised the Brandix wages issue in the Assembly on March 28 this year, said the Brandix India Apparel City entered into an MoU with the State government on July 2, 2005 assuring that the company would provide jobs to 60,000 youth in five years from the date of commencement of the operations. But so far only 18,000 people were given jobs that too for very low wages.
As per the MoU, if the company failed to fulfill the employment assurance it has to surrender the land to the extent not utilised. But more than 10 years had elapsed and the government had failed to take any action.
There was no rationale to pamper the company though it had provided employment to rural women, he said.
Raju said the government had spent Rs 110 crore for setting up a 220 KV sub-station, another Rs 110 crore for drawing water from Yeleru canal to the company, Rs 28 crore for laying a road between the NH and Achyutapuram and Rs 10 crore for a road between Achyutapuram and Brandix India Apparel City. Power concession of 75 paise per unit was also sanctioned.
“These infrastructural facilities were provided by the government in addition to allotting 1,000 acres of land at the rate of Rs 1 per acre for 25 years lease,’’ he added. Regarding wages, for which an agitation is going on, the BJP leader said GO 326 was issued on February 23, 2011 proposing new minimum wages varying from Rs 7,475 to Rs 9,075. But when the final GO (62) was released on November 9, 2011, the proposed new minimum wages were slashed by 48 per cent.
“It is nothing but a fraud committed by the Congress government to appease the foreign company,’’ the MLA alleged.
He said after the issue was raised in the Assembly, Minister for Labour K Atchannaidu assured him that an action would be taken in the interest of the workers. But nothing has been done so far.
The BJP floor leader in his letter to the Chief Minister on Wednesday requested him to consider better wages for the hapless women working in the Brandix company.
Meanwhile, tense situation is prevailing in the villages where the workers are located. Sources said the women had resolved to strike work till the wages are hiked and they would propose the same at the conciliation meeting to be held on Thursday.