 The Major Port Authority's Bill 2020 is replacing the Major Port Trust Act 1963. The very purpose of replacing the Major Port Trust Act by introducing the Major Port Authority Bill by the Shipping Minister Mansook Mandovia on 23rd of September this month in the Parliament. He himself categorically said what is the purpose. What he says, the Major Port Authority in the country is now doing the business as a service sector. Instead of doing the service sector, he categorically said in the Parliament that he wanted to convert as a landlord sector. Now we have to exactly understand what is the difference between the service sector and the landlord sector. That is the service model to the landlord model. Ports are now doing the service. In India, there are four important transport sectors are there. Road transport, rail transport and air transport and water transport. During this pandemic of COVID-19 lockdown period, except water transport, all the transport have been stopped for some time. Road transport was stopped, air transport was stopped, and rail transport was stopped. Whereas the water transport that is the shipping major ports did not stop even a single day during the pandemic. Today we are discussing on the pandemic lockdown period 186, 187 days is over. This service sector is doing the service to the people. For example, I will tell you a steel coil roll will be coming to the port and it is importing. From import it goes to the industrial area. For example, in Chennai, there is a Sri Vermattur and there is a Uragadam. There the Hyundai car factory is there. There the steel coil will be modified as a car. And again after a finished good car will be coming to the port and it is going exported. So this is the service which we do for this service. We make it charges. That is the port sector. This is called the service sector. Now he wanted to convert the service sector into landlord model, landlord sector. What is a landlord? For example, landlord means in real meaning of the landlord is landlord will not work at any factory, any office. Though he may be a graduate post graduate, he will not work anywhere. He will have a house or your flat or your shopping complex. From there he will be getting a money and he will be sitting simply and maintaining that building. Similarly, the ports in the country, from service model it is going to sit you over by this bill as a landlord model. Thereby all the terminals or the Colgo handling valve inside the port will be given to private party. That is what he said. This bill will enable to give all the terminals under PPP model. What is called the PPP model? Public private partnership. The same model the railway is also going to introduce. The railway is going to introduce more than 59 routes and 151 rail etc under PPP model. What is the PPP model? The people should first understand. The issue has to be taken to the people rather than the worker. Because PPP model, the private player will operate the terminal, will operate the cargo handling facilities. He will earn 100 rupees. For example, if he earns 100 rupees, he will take away 70 rupees. 30 rupees will be given to the port management. Port need not want any manpower. Nothing. So this is the landlord model. So this major port authority bill will be replacing the MPT act. MPT act so far we are serving as a service sector by this introducing MP a bill. It will become a landlord model port. Thereby all the terminals will be given to PPP model public private partnership. Private people will come and they will occupy this terminal. They will earn 100 rupees and they will take 70 rupees. 30 rupees will be given to port and there will not be any employment opportunity for any youth who are coming as an employee after sufficient qualification which he has studied. So this is the very short and very briefing of the MPA bill. In another aspect what the MPA bill says, there are so many controversial sections are there in the bill that I do not want to go on for a lengthy lecture. I would like to highlight only three points. Number one, other than the Indian railways in the country, lot of vacant lands are there for the port sector. As long as the existing MPT act, nobody can sell the port land. Rather than we can give it for a long term lease. By replacing this major port authority bill, the bill says any port can sell the land. That is number one, that we oppose. Number two, the ports is having a surplus money that is so far earned by the port worker. Port employees, pension fund is there, graduate fund is there, surplus profit is there, more than 45,000 crores funds are there in the port. Now these funds are maintained in the nationalized bank. Whereas the major port authority bill says it should be deposited in the private bank. That means it says any schedule bank. Schedule bank means including the nationalized bank, any private bank it can be deposited. We are very much worrying about the surplus fund. Number three is at most important is the national safety and security. If the major port authority bill comes, the board of directors, independent board of directors will sit together, they will decide and they will list out the shares in the share market. If the share market is listed out all the shares, any individual person who is purchasing a share will become the owner of the port. Then it is almost over. That is it has gone to private hand. There are other classes are also there. If the ports are going to private hand, there will be serious danger. Security of the nation is compromised. Why? For example, Visagapatnam, Goa, Mumbai, Puchin, all these areas are called naval base. We are having the Navy, naval air force base is there. If these ports are given to the private hands, anybody can take away the secrets of our own country. That is a very, very serious danger. So even in Bombay, the Bombay port was with us. Some terrorist has come and he has attacked during the year 2017 and 2018. That is what we have seen. So that is why we oppose this major port authority bill, Tooth and Nail. This major port authority bill will take away all the workers right. It is a detrimental to the national safety and security. It will take away the workers hard-earned money to the private banks. All these are all the very detrimental area. That is why we oppose. Definitely this bill has been passed in the Lok Sabha, but it is going to be ratified in the coming winter session of the Rajya Sabha. The Rajya Sabha winter session will mostly come to December end of January 1st. Until then, we will seriously take up the issue among the workers and public. How the major ports, if it is given to the private hands, how it will be a detrimental to the national safety and security, how the general public will affect by not able to get the employment opportunity, all these issues we will take up. We will further develop this workers movement and workers agitation. Anyway, this bill is dangerous to the country as well as people. We will oppose Tooth and Nail. Thank you.