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When the ONGC helicopter crashed at Bombay High, 35 kilometers away from Mumbai, on August 11, it was the public sector oil company's chairman Subir Raha who found himself in the eye of the storm.
Enraged workers, who resorted to a strike and protests against him, called his style of functioning of into question.
The high profile and powerful chairman of the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation no longer seemed invincible.
On having been asked to elaborate on the disciplinary steps he had initiated in the oil PSU, Raha had said in one of his interviews: "It is only reminding someone to have respect of law and 'fear of God.' If he is an agnostic, then fear of chairman.'
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Says a worker -- sporting a black arm band to signify protest -- at the ONGC office in Bandra (Mumbai): "(Petroleum minister) Ram Naik left his Cabinet meeting and came to assess the situation in Mumbai, but our chairman has no time for the workers. Only we know the risks we take to work for ONGC. . . but these things don't bother Raha."
The workforce was disillusioned ever since Raha launched his new management policy, two years ago when he joined ONGC after having worked with Indian Oil Corporation.
The new plan -- Corporate Rejuvenation Campaign -- also sparked off more than a little ire amongst the workers.
The new policy also evoked some amusement, with ONGC workers re-christening CRC as 'Confusion Round the Clock.'
"We never know what is happening in the company," says a worker, justifying the new tag.
"The top bosses are on their own trip and so are the middle level managers. There is no one to explain what is happening to the workers. Earlier we used to have regional directors who took up the responsibility, but now there are three to four bosses. . . and no one knows whom to report to," says the ONGC worker.
Adds his colleague on the condition of anonymity: "Everything was going smooth in our company. There was no need for this CRC. The CRC encouraged the nepotism. And old workers like me who have slogged for more than 25 years are still at the same level. There was some partiality earlier too in the company, but not to this extent."
Says K V Gaikwad, who works on ONGC's offshore rigs: "The problem with Raha is that he is not taking his staffers into confidence. He is our family head and after the helicopter accident, he should have been the first person to reach the spot. But he reached 24 hours late."
"Even now there is nothing in writing as to what will happen to my family if I die working on an offshore rig. He has to look into these things immediately. The workers' morale is at an all-time low and he should take some steps immediately to restore the confidence," adds Gaikwad.
Ajit Chonkar, Union Secretary of Petroleum Employees Union, says, "Earlier the top bosses of ONGC used to give collective audience to workers and the unions, but Raha is not interested in such things. He has had no meeting with us ever since he joined."
Raha was the Human Resource Development director at Indian Oil Corporation before getting the plum ONGC job.
"Before coming to ONGC, he sat in an air-conditioned cabin and always harassed staff over there. How will he understand our problems? How many times has he come offshore? He does not understand the nature of our job. . . like other managing directors do," adds another worker, shouting slogans against Raha.
The company's net profit rose from 6,221.55 crore (Rs 62.215 billion) to 10,467.46 crore (Rs 104.674 billion) in March 03 compared to that of March 02.
But the workers are in no mood to give credit to Raha for the growth.
"Earlier ONGC worked under the administrative price mechanism system, when the prices of petrol could not be raised without the permission of the government. But now APM has gone and globally the prices of oil have risen, so ONGC is also benefiting. He has done nothing for this company except implementing strict laws and disciplinary actions."
Complaining about Raha, L K Mirchandani, Mumbai President of Association of Scientific & Technical Officers, said: "We had given him several letters complaining about the lack of safety measures on offshore rigs, but he has always remained silence on this issue. He only visits offshore with the Prime Minister or the Union petroleum minister, and that too in the best helicopter, whereas we travel in all old choppers which are dangerous. Therefore, we feel that it is government's moral duty to suspend Raha so that the justice can be given to those who died in the accident."
The Association of Scientific and Technical Officers, the national union of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation employees and the SC/ST employees' union of ONGC, meanwhile, said that ASTO had warned the ONGC management about technical snags that had occurred earlier in the MI-172 helicopter that crashed on Monday.
"We have documentary proof that ASTO sent six letters reporting technical snags that occurred repeatedly in the ill-fated chopper," B M Aswal, working president of ASTO, said.
Union leaders further alleged that the ONGC management did not implement a memorandum of understanding, which was signed in September last year between ASTO and the management, on safety.
They also accused the management of not bringing out an audit report of the ONGC task force on safety and security.
The unions reiterated their demand that ONGC Chairman Subir Raha should be removed and the Central Bureau of Investigation should probe into the crash.
