BJP leader trains gun on Tata Steel on CSR

Jamshedpur, Feb 15 (UNI) Former Jharkhand Minister Raghuvar Das, today came down heavily on Tata Steel for its claim to serve the people through its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

Talking to newspersons here, Mr Das alleged that on one hand the steel giant was boasting of serving the common people through its CSR but on the other, apart from a handful of company employees, most of the citizens in the company's township were being deprived of the benefits.

He said the company had formed Jamshedpur Utilites Services Company (JUSCO) by diluting its town division for commercial benefit only and was charging additional bills from the common people in the name of providing civil amenities.

Mr Das, a former Urban Development and Finance Minister, alleged that the company was running a parallel government in its township.

'' We will stop all the illegal acts of Tata Steel, '' Mr Das warned.

He also critisised Tata Steel for its opposition to include Jamshedpur in the Central Government's Millennium City Project and the company move to knock at the door of the Supreme Court to exclude this steel city.

He said the Centre had chosen Ranchi, Dhandbad and Jamshedpur for the project, but while the two other towns would get the monetary benefit and civic amenities from the project, the steel city would be deprived owing to the company move.

'' We are also contemplating initiating legal action to revoke the decision, '' Mr Das said and criticized the UPA Government at the Centre for hiking the prices of petrol and diesel.

'' The Congress is a party of capitalists and the price hike is uncalled for. It will exert additional pressure on the common people. This anti-people and anti-working class government has to be uprooted, '' Mr Das said.

The BJP leader also attacked Union Labour Minister Oscar Farnandes for his assurance to the labourers during INTUC's national meet held here recently.

Mr Fernandes had ''misled'' the labourers by saying the government would fix minimum wages to Rs 5000.

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