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'Balco controversy not to hit private investment in Chhattisgarh'

The Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Ajit Jogi on Friday asserted that the Balco privatisation controversy would not dissuade private participation in the state and claimed it was attracting huge investments.

"Investment is pouring in and in fact Chhattisgarh has attracted large delegations from the US and Japan. Five big power sector projects are coming up in the state and steel plants are also in the pipeline," Jogi told reporters after a meeting with deputy chairman of Planning Commission K C Pant to finalise the annual plan of the state for 2001-02.

Jogi said that in fact most investors were taking a long-term view, and given the rich mineral resources, were very bullish about the state.

Asked if the state was against divestment, Jogi said: "We are not against divestment, but this is not the direction that the process of divestment should take."

Jogi also said he had no plans to meet either the Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee or Divestment Minister Arun Shourie on the issue during his stay in New Delhi.

Shourie, who is also planning and programme implementation minister, did not attend the annual plan meeting.

The Balco issue, Jogi said, was primarily between the Centre, the trade union and the management, and that he supported the decision of the workers to go on strike work as the deal smacked of corruption and lacked transparency.

"This is an illegal deal. I endorse the stand of my party that this deal is not transparent, it is against the law of the law and it smacks of corruption," he said.

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