Dibrugarh, Feb. 8: The Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) today launched an agitation against the Centre’s alleged move to privatise the Assam Asset of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited.
Thousands of party workers and supporters staged a two-hour dharna around noon in front of the Nazira-based Assam Asset headquarters office in Sivasagar district.
Later, a memorandum addressed to Union petroleum minister Murli Deora was handed over to the executive director of ONGC, P.V. Rao.
Addressing the protesters, party president Chandra Mohan Patowary expressed anguish over the Centre’s arrogant attitude towards privatisation of the Assam Asset.
“We will never allow this (privatisation) to happen. We will further intensify our agitation,” he said.
Former state chief minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta, too, came down heavily on the Centre.
“The Centre has always deprived Assam of its due. It has always taken the cream and in return given us mere peanuts. The central government will have to change this attitude,” Mahanta said.
Later, speaking to this correspondent, AGP general secretary Sarbananda Sonowal alleged that the Centre had hatched a conspiracy to hand over oil and gas reserves of the state to an influential private party.
“We will not allow the government to form a separate company and management unit for the Assam Asset of ONGCL,” Sonowal said.
The party also decided to send a delegation to New Delhi soon to put further pressure on the government to shun the idea of forming a separate unit involving the Assam Asset of ONGC.
Soruce:http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100209/jsp/northeast/story_12081558.jsp
No comments:
Post a Comment