Bangladesh - Panel suggests cancellation deals on 3 cotton mills

A parliamentary panel has recommended scrapping of deals the previous BNP-led coalition government struck to privatise three state-run cotton mills at throwaway prices.

The parliamentary standing committee on jute and textile ministry at a meeting on Tuesday also suggested the ministry go for a re-tender to privatise those mills.

Chairman Akhtaruzzaman Chowdhury said his committee made the recommendation as the 2001-2006 government had privatised the mills at ‘very low prices’.

“Out of the four mills, we have recommended cancellation of the privatisation deals of the National Cotton Mills, Monno Textile Mills and Olympia Textile Mills,” Chowdhury told reporters after the meeting at parliament building.

He said the committee did not recommend the cancellation of agreement on Bawani Textile Mills as the employees had purchased it to run as cooperatives.

The chairman said one particular mill, , for instance, was denationalised at a cost of Tk 58 lakh against its value of Tk 4 crore.

The new entrepreneurs in many cases have started evicting people from the mills compounds, according to the ministry officials.
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Source: bdnews24.com