Kerala: Youths Rally Against HLL Privatisation, Uphold State’s First Right to Bid

Thiruvananthapuram: On Tuesday over 1,500 youth rallied to Hindustan Lifecare Ltd (HLL) Thiruvananthapuram, demanding the Union government roll back its decision to hand over the central PSU to private players. The 'Long March' organised by the Democratic Youth Federation of India(DYFI) covered 12 km through the state's capital, from HLL headquarters at Poojappura to the production unit at Peroorkada.

Addressing the rally, AA Rahim, DYFI All India President and the Left's candidate to Rajya Sabha for the upcoming vacancies in April, said the Union government's disinvestment streak is a serious threat to the youth. Privatisation of PSUs like HLL would hinder the employment prospects of the youth and undermine the reservation system, which assures public sector jobs to the weaker sections of the society, he added.

Photo Credits: Deshabhimani

While proceeding with the disinvestment of HLL despite strong opposition from the Government of Kerala, trade unions and the public, the Union government had also denied the state an option to participate in the open bidding and retain it as a state PSU. In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had called the Centre's move ‘contrary to the principles of cooperative federalism’.

The State government had earlier requested the Centre to call off the disinvestment of HLL. When the Union government proceeded further despite the opposition from the State government, Kerala expressed its interest to participate in the open bidding. But the response from the Centre has not been promising. The Department of Investment and Public Asset Management ruled out the scope for government/government PSEs to take part in the strategic disinvestment process in pursuance of the Preliminary Information Memorandum and Expression of Interest.

In his letter to the PM, CM Vijayan noted the State government has the competence accorded to it by the Constitution to make decisions on its own in such matters. It is not specified anywhere that the State government/state PSUs are not eligible to participate in the bidding process of HLL, he wrote. Vijayan also urged the PM to note that the land assets of HLL were acquired and handed over to the Centre by the state for setting up a specific project. Hence, the State government should be given the ‘First Right’ to hold the land and assets of the Hindustan Lifecare Ltd in Kerala, wrote CM Vijayan in his letter to the Centre.

The issue was also raised in Rajya Sabha by John Brittas MP. The journalist turned CPIM MP demanded the state should be allowed to take over HLL on mutually agreeable terms. Brittas said that HLL, the only PSU under the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare played a vital role in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It shows the necessity to keep it in the public sector as the government needs such an arm in cases of health exigencies. It is equally pertinent to note that HLL Lifecare has been making profits for the last three years and that the Government of Kerala had played a significant role by handing over about 19 acres of land at prime locations free of cost, which would fetch several hundreds of crores now, for establishing the units of HLL Lifecare Ltd. in the State,” he said.

Photo Credits: Deshabhimani

Under the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Hindustan Latex Limited was established in 1969 to manufacture natural rubber latex condoms at affordable rates to cater to the requirements of the National Family Planning program. The first production unit was established at Peroorkada in the capital city of Kerala, considering the state's abundance in rubber. The State government acquired land for the project and handed it over to the Union government.

Later, the PSU expanded their operations to various other healthcare products and services. The company changed its name to Hindustan Lifecare Ltd. In 2009, it now has seven manufacturing units, four of them in Kerala. Having established their goodwill in producing high-quality hospital products, pharmaceuticals, ayurvedic, vaccines, personal hygiene products and diagnostic kits etc, HLL has emerged as one of the government enterprises to trust at times of major health crises. The company also runs seven subsidiaries, including Hindlabs, Life Spring maternity and Childcare hospitals, and Goa Antibiotics & Pharmaceuticals Limited (GAPL).