Centre must end neglect of BrahMos unit in Thiruvananthapuram: CPI

Thiruvananthapuram : CPI strongly criticised Union govt for its continued neglect of BrahMos Aerospace facility in the district, calling for immediate steps to resume and expedite its development.

CPI state secretary and BrahMos employees union (AITUC) president Binoy Viswam said that despite high hopes when the state handed over 15.75 acres near Thiruvananthapuram airport to the defence ministry in Dec 2007 for the BrahMos missile manufacturing facility, no substantial progress has been made since.

The land, which belonged to public-sector company Keltech, was transferred for just Re 1 with the sole intention of promoting national defence manufacturing in Kerala, he said. "BrahMos Thiruvananthapuram Ltd started functioning as a subsidiary of BrahMos Aerospace in Jan 2008, but the unit saw no development on the land allocated to it," said Viswam.

He criticised central govt's decision to set up full-fledged BrahMos units in Hyderabad, Nagpur and more recently in Lucknow, while Thiruvananthapuram, despite receiving land without any investment, was only made a subsidiary, effectively sidelining its growth. Even for the Thiruvananthapuram unit to receive orders, it must compete with private firms in tenders and provide the lowest quote along with bank guarantees, an unfair hurdle for a public sector subsidiary, Viswam added.

BrahMos managing director, during the facility's inauguration in the presence of chief minister and defence minister, had announced a fully operational missile production facility within three years and an investment of over Rs 1,000 crore, he recalled. Viswam urged both central and state govts to act swiftly to revive and develop the BrahMos facility in the state capital.