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Hyderabad: Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka on Sunday, June 14, declared that “exploiters and opportunists” would not be allowed to cast their eyes on Singareni Collieries, hitting out at the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) for what he called a campaign of misinformation against the state-owned coal miner.

Vikramarka, who also holds the finance portfolio, was addressing a gathering at the Srirampur Open Cast Coal Mine in Mancherial district, where he conducted an open-house inspection alongside IT Minister Sridhar Babu.

Hitting back at BRS

The Deputy CM said the inspection had been organised specifically to counter what he described as baseless allegations being spread by BRS leaders for political gain, including letters written to the central government alleging wrongdoing in Singareni. “The letters being written by BRS leaders suggesting wrongdoing in Singareni are far from the truth,” he said, adding that any insult to the dignity of Singareni workers would not be tolerated.

“Singareni is not merely a company but an asset belonging to the people of Telangana. It is a crown jewel of this state and attempts are being made to tarnish its image through baseless allegations,” he said.

He assured that the mine had sufficient coal reserves to sustain production for another 28 years, and that every process within Singareni was carried out using advanced computerised systems ensuring full transparency in coal production, stock management and transportation.

Welfare push

Vikramarka outlined a range of measures being taken for worker welfare. On healthcare, he said advanced facilities including a Cath Lab were being established, and fully-equipped cancer screening buses would be deployed in villages to enable early detection, following reports of a rise in cancer cases in rural areas.

For education, the government is setting up institutions with international standards for workers’ children and has sanctioned funds to upgrade existing schools.

He also recalled the government’s accident insurance scheme, described as a first of its kind, providing Rs 1.25 crore compensation to families of workers who die in accidents. Students from workers’ families preparing for civil services examinations would receive full financial assistance across the preliminary, mains and interview stages, he added.