The CPI(M) is not averse to closure or restructuring of state-owned enterprises as long as humanitarian aspects are taken care of and the assets of such enterprises are used for creation of fresh infrastructure and public projects. |
Speaking on sidelines of the official session of the CPI(M) being held at Kamarhati today, a top CPI(M) leader said compulsions of running a state government had convinced even hard-liners that a pragmatic approach towards induction of foreign funds and technology had to be adopted, particularly in the infrastructure sector. |
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"The aim is to convince delegates that the subsidy provided to state enterprises far outstrip the value of the public service rendered, and the funds can be used much better to serve the people directly," the leader said. |
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Keeping the humanitarian angle in mind, displaced workers would be rehabilitated through a one-time settlement over and above the statutory dues as an anti-poverty measure, besides offering workers options to acquire fresh skills, like operation of Internet cafes and telephone booths, he said. |
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But murmurs of protest were heard from old-timers to any type of manpower cut or redevelopment of industrial land. |
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Industries Minister Nirupam Sen and Land Reforms Minister AR Mollah were at loggerhead about the closure of sick companies and re-development of their lands. |
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The difference in opinion was at its sharpest about the use of land held by loss-making state enterprises with little hope of ever being turned around. |
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"Take the case of Calcutta Tramways Corporation, which has hundreds of acres of land at different locations in the city. It reported total earnings of Rs 13.5 crore against the expenditure of Rs 92 crore in 2001-02. It cannot be sustained," said a leader diverging from the official line put out by the party state secretary Anil Biswas. |
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The company paid for 2.88 million mandays and each employee served only 28 passengers a day for its electric tramcar service, while its bus service saw each employee serving only 56 passengers a day despite buses being the most preferred mode of transport in the city. Interestingly, the bus service reported a Rs 29 crore expenditure and earned only Rs 20 crore in 2001-02, the last year for which the company's accounts have been prepared. |
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Losses had climbed since then, said the delegate, who would later place these records before opponents to the state sector enterprise reforms, if matters came to a head. |
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"The story is the same for many enterprises and the losses are staggering as is the level of subsidy provided by the state," said the delegate. |
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