Oppn join hands to fight for Bayyaram steel plant

Mahabubabad: The leaders of different Opposition parties took out a protest rally and staged dharna at Bayyaram mandal headquarters in the district on Monday, demanding the Centre to set up steel plant at Bayyaram.

The Opposition parties have staged the protest under the banner of ‘Bayyaram Ukku Parishrama Sadhana Committee’. A massive rally, participated by hundreds of people, who raised slogans against the Centre, was taken out from local bus stand to tahsildar office.

They staged a dharna in front of the tahsildar office and submitted a memorandum to tahsildar Pulla Rao. Former union minister P Balram Naik, MLC Ponguleti Sudhakar Reddy, the committee convener Gouni Ilaiah and others addressed the gathering.

The leaders accused the BJP-led NDA government at the centre of ignoring the clause (13) in the AP Reorganisation Act, through which, the UPA government promised to set up steel plant in Telangana. They found fault with the Centre for claiming that setting up steel plant was
not feasible.

They alleged that the State government failed to put pressure on the Centre to establish the steep plant at Bayyaram as per the AP Reorganisation Act. Due to the Centre’s denial to set up the steel factory, the hopes of thousands of unemployed youth of getting jobs were shattered.

Congress leaders Sudhakar Reddy and Balaram Naik felt that the State government was not keen to set up at Bayyaram and the committee recently constituted up by the TRS government to study the feasibility of the steel plant was an act of ‘eye wash’.

They warned that Congress would stage massive protests in New Delhi to mount pressure on the Centre to deliver the promise made in the Reorganisation Act. Similarly, the agitations in the State would be intensified in support of the demand, the leaders said.

CPM district secretary Sadula Srinivas, CPI district secretary B Vijayasarathi, the committee co-conveners Manda Rajanna, G Satyanarayana, P Rangaiah and others participated in the protest.