The announcement of ex-gratia for the victims of Monday’s fatal accident at the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant has triggered an interesting debate over who will ultimately pay the compensation.
The reason: Leaders of the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Jana Sena Party (JSP) have made announcements on the payment of ex-gratia as if it were a state government initiative, though the announcement was originally made by the plant management itself.
On Tuesday, Andhra Pradesh IT minister Nara Lokesh and Jana Sena Party chief and deputy chief minister Pawan Kalyan made separate announcements in Visakhapatnam, stating that the families of the eight workers killed in Monday’s accident would receive Rs 25 lakh each as compensation, while the six injured workers would be given Rs 10 lakh each.
During his visit to the accident site, Pawan Kalyan stated that the families of the deceased workers would receive Rs 25 lakh as compensation, along with a job for an eligible family member.
He also announced Rs 10 lakh assistance for each injured worker.
Minister Lokesh, too, highlighted the compensation package during his interactions with the victims’ families and the media.
These announcements, however, have led to confusion among the public over whether the compensation is being paid from the state government’s resources or by the steel plant management.
The fact is that the Rs 25 lakh ex-gratia for the deceased had already been announced by the management of Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) on Monday night itself.
RINL is a Central Public Sector Undertaking under the Union Ministry of Steel and does not come under the control of the Andhra Pradesh government.
In fact, Union steel minister H D Kumaraswamy also announced the same financial package for the family of every deceased employee, whether permanent workers or outsourced personnel.
He said the compensation would be in addition to statutory benefits such as insurance, provident fund, gratuity and other service-related entitlements.
Trade union leaders argue that public representatives should clearly differentiate between assistance being provided by the state government and compensation announced by the employer.
Adding to the controversy, Left leaders confronted Nara Lokesh at King George Hospital and demanded that the compensation be enhanced to Rs 1 crore for each victim’s family.
Lokesh said he had not come there to announce compensation, but only to extend moral support to the victims’ families.
Interestingly, YSRCP leader Perni Nani pointed out that the state government had announced no fresh compensation and said the Rs 25 lakh ex-gratia was already part of the steel plant’s existing policy.
He demanded that the coalition government pay Rs 1 crore compensation and provide a government job to one family member of each deceased worker, along with Rs 50 lakh compensation for each injured worker.
