Committee on AFT issues submits report

Puducherry, Nov 27 (UNI) The two-member committee constituted to look into issues like central dearness allowance, enhancement of salary, work assessment and norms to the Anglo-French Textile mills workers submitted its report.

Central Excise Commissioner (Rtd) Manickavasagam and retired Commercial Tax Commissioner Ramadass today submitted the report to Chief Minister V Vaithilingam and Labour Minister E Valsaraj. Mr Vaithilingam said the report would be placed before the Cabinet to take a decision on the implementation of the recommendations.

Former Chief Minister N Rangasamy had constituted the two-member committee.

Mr Vaithilingam later told newspersons that the administration had suffered a loss of Rs 381 crore after taking over the running of AFT mill from the private party.

Though the government was providing Rs 24 crore annually to the mill, it required Rs 44 crore per annum towards salary alone, he said adding in the last eight months the production was only to the tune of Rs 18 crore.

He said a committee would be constituted to go into the issues of the Swadeshi and Sri Bharathi mills, which were presently under government control and ruled out the possibility of merging the mills with AFT due to technical reasons.

To a question, he said the government would consider handing over the AFT mill to private parties if anyone comes forward to takeover the mill in coordination with the government.

UNI PAB ROY 1453