KOLKATA (miningweekly.com) - Even as the Indian government is caught in two minds over divesting its equity holding in producer Coal India Limited (CIL), the move itself has triggered convergence among various trade unions despite their differing political allegiances.

The lead to oppose divestment has been taken by Indian National Mine Workers Federation (INMWF), affiliated to the Congress party, the major opposition party to the ruling federal government.

“We are opposing government disinvestment in CIL. We have already had informal talks with all other trade unions in the coal industry and a formal resolution opposing the move will be taken shortly at a meeting of all the trade unions,” INMWF general secretary S Q Zama said.

The five major trade unions active among CIL workers include INMWF affiliated to Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC), the labour arm of the Congress party, Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), and left wing organisations Centre for Indian Trade Unions and All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC).

However, industry watchers and the government were keeping a close watch on whether BMS, with significant presence among mineworkers, would actually participate in the joint resolution to oppose government divestment as it was the labour arm of the Bharatiya Janata Party which leads the federal government in New Delhi.

Significantly, the BMS was part of the Joint Action Committee, which had called for a one-day strike in September to oppose the divestment along with other trade unions. But a section of the workers were now skeptical that BMS would break ranks and not join the fresh round of opposition direct action.

However, a worker representing All India Coal Workers’ Federation, affiliated to AITUC said: “We are confident that all trade unions in the coal industry will be part of our future direct action since all trade unions irrespective of their political allegiances will set aside political difference when it comes to taking up interests of coal miners”.

On whether another round of strikes at CIL was on the cards he said: ‘Protests can take many forms. All of which can paralyse functioning of mines. We will decide the appropriate course jointly”.

He said that soon after the previous two rounds of equity sale in CIL, the government had assured trade unions that “no further disinvestment would be considered in the mining company and its basic contours as a public sector company would not be changed. But clearly the government is backtracking on its assurances now”.

The government was on Thursday expected to finalise the list of merchant bankers to be given the disinvestment mandate to sell 10% of government’s equity that was expected to raise $3-billion for the exchequer.

But uncertainty still dogs the government’s equity sale, ostensibly owing to ‘adverse market conditions’, and possible disinterest in stocks of fossil fuel companies among foreign financial institutions.