Dy CM Bhatti Vikramarka dismisses false propaganda against Singareni

Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka on Saturday strongly condemned what he described as a malicious propaganda campaign against Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL), alleging that deliberate misinformation was being spread to tarnish the reputation of the public sector undertaking and the state government.

Speaking to the media, Bhatti expressed anger over what he termed as fabricated stories and slogans aimed at damaging Singareni’s self-respect. He questioned whose interests were behind the writings and campaigns that, he said, were undermining the morale of workers at one of the country’s largest public sector companies.

Referring to the recent developments, the Deputy Chief Minister asked, “One person wrote an article, another wrote a letter, and yet another ordered an inquiry. What is the connection between these three?” He reiterated that Singareni is an autonomous organisation and that all decisions are taken by its management.

Bhatti said the state government welcomes Union Minister G Kishan Reddy’s visit and the decision to order an inquiry. He rejected claims that the site visit rule in tenders was introduced only after he assumed office, asserting that the facts would prove otherwise and should be made known to the public.

Calling the allegations “completely false”, Bhatti pointed out that Coal India introduced the site visit rule as early as 2018, while NMDC implemented it in 2021. He said Singareni adopted the rule in 2023, in line with CMPDI guidelines, which clearly mandate site visits.

He further noted that neither he nor the Congress party was in power when similar rules were introduced elsewhere. Several central and state organisations, including the Railways, Hindustan Copper, Gujarat Industries Power Company and the Maharashtra government, follow the same procedure, he said.

Bhatti accused certain sections of spreading a false narrative that the site visit clause does not exist anywhere else, and asserted that the inquiry would expose the truth.