AIADMK flays Pondy govt for 'failure' to salvage AFT mill

In a release, the legislature wing leader of the AIADMK, A Anbalagan, a former worker in the AFT mill, charged the territorial government with not initiating steps to relieve the major textile undertaking of its crisis. "It is indeed mind boggling that the Chief Minister has now blamed the Lt Governor Kiran Bedi as being responsible for the closure of the mill.

Opposition AIADMK in Puducherry on Tuesday flayed the Narayanasamy headed government here for its alleged failure to take timely steps to salvage the state-run AFT mill, which is now closed. In a release, the legislature wing leader of the AIADMK, A Anbalagan, a former worker in the AFT mill, charged the territorial government with not initiating steps to relieve the major textile undertaking of its crisis.

"It is indeed mind boggling that the Chief Minister has now blamed the Lt Governor Kiran Bedi as being responsible for the closure of the mill. This is utterly an untenable stand on the part of the Chief Minister," he said. AFT mill started in 1898 in private sector was taken over by the territorial government in 1994 through a textiles corporation.

The Chief Minister of Puducherry had on Monday accused Lt Governor Kiran Bedi of being 'responsible' for the crisis in the mill and claimed that his government had initiated several steps and even allocated funds every year to take care of its employees. Anbalagan said, "There is no point in blaming the Lt Governor to cover up the failure of the government in rehabilitating the mill." He suggested to the government to evolve a plan to operate the mill under Public Private Partnership mode with the government holding 51 percent of the total shares in the undertaking.