A group of MPs from the State and representatives of Save FACT Action Committee met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Wednesday requesting him to speed up the approval for a financial package for the fertilizer company’s revival.
A member of the delegation said the Prime Minister’s assurance that he would look into the crisis at FACT was a “breakthrough after a long period of uncertainty over the financial package for the company”.
However, Mr. Modi raised questions about the stalled LNG pipeline work in the State. He said it was important to complete the pipeline work on time. The Prime Minister emphasised the necessity of the natural gas pipeline for the revival of FACT. However, he assured the delegation that the revival of FACT would not be linked to the completion of the pipeline.
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The team of MPs informed the Prime Minister that the State Chief Minister and the Opposition leader had publicly stated on Tuesday that the LNG pipeline work would be completed.
The delegation also met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. The delegation included N.K. Premachandran, K.V. Thomas, P. Karunakaran, P. Rajeev, Innocent, K.N. Balagopal and P.K. Biju, MPs, and Save FACT Action Committee leaders K. Radhakrishnan and George Thomas.
The delegation also handed over a memorandum signed by 19 MPs from the State to the Prime Minister, said a statement issued by Save FACT Action Committee.
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The Rs. 991-crore financial package recommended by the Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction has been pending for nearly two years now. Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers Ananth Kumar, who visited FACT early this year, had assured the trade union leaders and company management that the Union government would provide financial assistance for the company’s revival at the earliest.