Officers of public sector oil companies have threatened to go on a strike from March 15 against decision to cull RS Sharma's appointment as chairman of ONGC.
NEW DELHI: Officers of public sector oil companies have threatened to go on a strike from March 15 against the 'arbitrary' manner in which the Prime Minister's Office culled RS Sharma's appointment as chairman of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation.
Oil Sector Officers Association, a body representing 45,000 officers in 13 oil PSUs including ONGC, Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum, Hindustan Petroleum and GAIL, have served a notice to go on a two-day strike from March 15 against the decision to cull Sharma's appointment even after all agencies including Central Vigilance and CBI giving a clean chit.
"We strongly and unequivocally condemn the irrational, arbitrary and high-handed decision to quash the appointment of a person recommended by the Public Enterprise Selection Board (PESB)," OSOA convenor Ashok Singh said in Mumbai.
OSOA will support the direct action programme drawn by the Association of Scientific and Technical Officers that represents 23,000 officers of the 38,000-strong ONGC workforce, he said.
A strike by oil sector officers could cripple the economy by directly impacting oil and gas production and fuel supplies. Aviation services had come to a halt within hours of OSOA going on strike a few years ago.
The post of chairman and managing director in ONGC fell vacant on May 25, 2006 when the government denied Subir Raha a second term. The PSEB on August 30 recommended Sharma's name for the top job, but PMO on February 6 rejected the candidature without assigning any reason.
Without a full-time chairman, ONGC has lost its position as India's highest market-capitalisation company to Reliance Industries.
Industry sources said officers of PSUs from other sectors are also likely to join the strike as the government decision is being seen as an attempt to curtail the autonomy of Navratna (prime jewel) PSUs.
Singh said while the government acknowledges ONGC's critical importance for energy security of the country, it still allowed India's top oil and gas producer to languish without a regular chairman for nearly ten months.
"The decision of the government to rope in outsiders for the post of chairman and managing director of the most profitable PSU is considered as a willful humiliation and embarrassment caused not only to ONGC but the entire oil sector PSUs," he said.
"This could open the floodgate for transfer of critical information and business secrets of the CPSUs to their competitors in the private sector and facilitate siphoning off the public wealth to private hands."
OSOA, he said, has unanimously resolved to extend support to the direct action programme of ASTO. It also resolved to appeal to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Petroleum Minister Murli Deora to intervene in this matter and appoint a chairman and managing director as per recommendation of PESB.
ASTO has decided to hold dharnas from March 7 and hunger strike on March 12. It would go on a 48-hour strike beginning 6 am on March 15.
The government had on February 6 scrapped the August 30 recommendation of PESB, saying the selection process was inadequate and wanted private sector candidates to apply for the top job.
Interestingly, the current procedure does not bar private sector candidates from applying.
CPI-M leader Tapen Sen had in a February 13 letter to Oil Minister Murli Deora termed the move as a 'sinister' campaign to install an outsider in the cash-rich PSU as government agencies had found nothing that disqualified Sharma.
While Sharma, who is eligible to re-apply, is unlikely to stand for the contest again, the names doing the rounds for the top job at ONGC include VK Sibal, Director General Hydrocarbons.
ASTO-Central Working Committee president Sanjay Goel said: "We have never opposed anyone. In its 50-year history, ONGC has seen only one chairman, SK Manglik, from within while the rest were from outside. But all is not right the way
PSEB's recommendation was scrapped... Do they want to impose someone who can sell out the company?"
"ASTO-CWC reiterates that any attempt by the government to derail the smooth functioning of ONGC and to dilute or sell out the jewel in the crown of PSUs would be resisted tooth and nail," he said.
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