NREU seeks intervention of Assam MPs to retain NRL’s public sector status

A Correspondent

GOLAGHAT: The Numaligarh Refinery Employees’ Union (NREU) has sought the intervention of Assam’s Members of Parliament (MPs) to retain Numaligarh Refinery Limited’s public sector status.

In a press statement, the working president and secretary of Numaligarh Refinery Employees’ Union (NREU), Binod Gogoi and Ripun Saikia respectively, said that the permanent workmen of NRL submitted memorandum to Assam MPs for urgent intervention and favourable decision on the vital and sensitive issue with respect to the privatization and disinvestment of Numaligarh Refinery Limited located in Golaghat.

Further, they said that the Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) had been serving crucial macroeconomic objectives such as higher economic growth, self-sufficiency in production of goods and services, infrastructure development and healthy market condition. Moreover, the CPSEs are also playing a significant role in discharging corporate social responsibility (CSR), especially in the field of health, education and skill development.

“Oil PSUs like ONGC, OIL, IOCL, BPCL, HPCL and NRL, some of whom are either Maharatna or Navaratna PSUs, are remitting huge money to the national exchequer in the name of different taxes and dividend every year since their inception, which ultimately helps in nation building and improving national economy. It is due to the success of these OIL PSUs that our nation has become self-reliant up to a certain extent in petroleum energy.

Compared to this, we have not seen any significant role of private sector industries towards building the nation. But unfortunately, the Government of India time-to-time handed over these national assets to the private parties in the name of disinvestment, economic liberalization and strategic sale. It is true that privatization of oil industry cannot help our country but will definitely destroy our PSU oil industries,” they said.

The NREU leaders added, “Numaligarh Refinery Limited was set up as per outcome of the historic Assam Accord of 1985 which was signed after six long years of Assam Agitation where 855 martyrs laid their lives. Therefore, no one can deny the fact that Numaligarh Refinery symbolizes the sentiments and emotions of every individual of Assam in particular and entire Northeast in general. Moreover, one of the reasons that NRL was set up in such a remote place far away from its national capital was to develop the poor economic infrastructure and backward social status. NRL, from its first commercial production started after inception in FY-2000-2001 till 2018-19, has paid more than Rs 30,000 crore to the national and state exchequer and thus, NRL is immensely contributing to the economy and growth of the nation as well as the socio-economic development of the region. One more vital point why NRL should not go into the hands of private parties is that NRL is located in a remote area of our north-eastern frontier which is strategically important to the external security of our country.” The NREU appealed to members of both Houses of Parliament to take all necessary steps so that NRL could be merged with IOCL to restore its PSU status.