Union asks liquidator to disclose ‘oil reserve’ value before sale of Assam mills

From Our Correspondent 

GUWAHATI:

The Joint Action Committee of Recognised Unions (JACRU) of Nagaon and Cachar Paper Mills (JACRU) has asked the Hindustan Paper Corporation Limited (HPCL) liquidator to disclose the volume and valuation of oil reserves “available in the township area housing the Cachar Paper Mill at Panchgram in Hailakandi district before the mill is auctioned at a throwaway price.”

The committee also sought the intervention of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Central Vigilance Commission to inquire why the disclosure has not been made in the renewed auction notice issued recently for e-auction of the two non-functional paper mills owned by the Hindustan Paper Corporation Limited (HPCL) on July 22 at a reduced reserve price.

The first auction which was scheduled by the end of last month had to be cancelled.

“JACRU apprehends major irregularities in the auction documents and seeks clarification from the liquidator prior to the sale of the assets. We have also invited immediate intervention of CBI and Central Vigilance Commission to probe the matter,” JACRU president Manobendra Chakraborty stated in a letter to the HPCL liquidator.

The committee further claimed that more than three natural oil well (reserve) points existed in the Cachar Paper Mill township area and the land area, enriched with underground oil reserve, reportedly is under a lease rent agreement with Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC).

“Surprisingly, the valuation of the oil reserve has not been disclosed anywhere in the auction notification where only the land area has been detailed without earmarking ‘oil reserved land’,” Chakraborty, who is also the president of the Cachar Paper Project Workers’ Union (INTUC), stated
JACRU, while seeking transparency in the transaction, urged the liquidator to disclose the volume and valuation of natural oil/gas available in the oil well (reserve) land area.

The committee sought details of the criteria adopted to fix the price of the oil well (reserve) land area and the period of lease rent agreement with ONGC.

“As (any) land having oil reserves is precious and has national interest (being the national property), we request you to disclose the details prior to selling the land to any third party,” the JACRU president stated in the letter.

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