PORVORIM: Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said presently only Vedanta has started mining operations under the new regime and we have put a condition to give preference to employing previously laid off employees and to locals. He claimed that 90% of the old employees were re-employed. We cannot make it mandatory for them to take back 100% of the employees. Opposition Leader Yuri Alemao contested this figure and said out of the 303 laid off employees 154 were unemployed which works out to 50%.
Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai questioned when earlier CM said that govt cannot make it mandatory to re-employ old employees, how was he saying that now it can be done? He also asked how many companies had registered on the website and advertised vacancies. CM said only Vedanta has started operations just 2 months ago and had not registered on the website, at which Sardesai said it was a violation.