Kumaraswamy slams Karnataka Minister for ordering recovery of 281 acres of HMT land

Bengaluru, Aug 13 (PTI) Union Minister for Steel and Heavy Industries H D Kumaraswamy on Tuesday hit out at Karnataka Minister Eshwar Khandre over his administrative note giving 'clear instructions' to the state forest department to initiate measures to recover 281 acres from Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) Limited contending that it was a forest land.

Kumaraswamy asked the Forest Minister to "shed his pettiness" and cooperate with him to revive ‘the pride of Bengaluru’, which once ruled the watch market with 90 per cent market share but now was on the verge of closure.

“Doesn’t the pitiable condition of this PSU bring tears to your eyes, which had once captured 90 per cent of the market? Don’t you take pride in Karnataka? Should we come to power to close such plants? Mr Khandre, shed this pettiness,” he told reporters here.

He was referring to Khandre’s August nine administrative note where he cited the June 11, 1896 gazette notification showing that 599 acres in the survey number 1 in Peenya-Jalahalli in Bengaluru city was forest land. He said there are no records to show that the said land was gifted to the HMT as has been said.

Citing the Supreme Court ruling, “Once a forest is always a forest – Environment is more important than civil rights”, the Forest Minister had asked the Additional Chief Secretary (Forest, Wildlife and Ecology department) to initiate steps to recover 281 acres of vacant land out of 599 acres of HMT land.

Khandre’s move came days after Kumaraswamy visited HMT Limited and had a meeting with its officials for its revival.

Rubbishing the Forest Minister’s claim, Kumaraswamy, the JD(S) second-in-command, said the HMT plant that was visited by the first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, former Prime Ministers Lal Bahadur Shastri and Indira Gandhi was set up by acquiring the land way back in 1958-59 and 1968-70.

According to him, the HMT made a profit of Rs 270 crore in 1970. With these funds, the HMT set up its units in Hyderabad, Uttarakhand, Ajmer and Kerala.

The tractor manufacturing unit in Pinjore town in Haryana was a big success, the Minister said, adding that the Tatas came up with its Titan brand and took away 350 engineers from HMT to their unit, which led to the downfall of the central PSU.

Kumaraswamy wondered why the state Forest Minister was "silent" for so many years.

“Why did the Minister write a note after remaining silent for so many decades? Can land be recovered on the basis of the Minister's ‘clear instruction’? On what basis he gave directions? Does he know the subject?” the Union Minister sought to know.

He said the portfolio he is entrusted with has 40 CPSUs. Out of them 27 are shut down and others are on the verge of closure.

He said he has been struggling hard to give a new lease of life to these PSUs. He added that he firmly believed that he can convince Prime Minister Narendra Modi to revive them.

“When I am putting in so much effort, all of a sudden you issue a note to take back land, which is worth Rs 10,000 crore,” Kumaraswamy said.

Underlining that the HMT paid for the land it owned, the Union Minister, citing documents, pointed out that on November 25, 1960 the Chief Conservator of Forests, Bengaluru was consulted in the matter for the release of land reports that the total area available for disposal was 283.57 acre as against 260 acres requested for HMT limited and the CCF said he has no objection to its grant.

“Nothing was taken for free. Everything was paid for. There is clarity here,” Kumaraswamy said, citing documents.

Questioning Khandre’s "intervention" in the matter, the Union Minister said: “You have given orders to acquire vacant land in a hurry. Whom you want to give this land to?” He also read out a gazette notification citing the donation of land to HMT during the time of Mysuru Maharaja.

The JD(S) state chief sought to know how the property tax is collected from the HMT Limited if it was forest land.

“Don’t spoil the state for your grudge against HDK (Kumaraswamy). I am also trying to improve the Visvesvaraya Iron and Steel Plant. Cooperate with us. This loot is enough now,” he said. PTI