[Letter to Mr Minoo Masani]

Summary

This three-page English correspondence file concerns the failure of the Orissa Mining Corporation (OMC) to pay Voltas Limited for earth-moving equipment and spare parts. In a letter dated 11 March 1968, M. R. Masani asks Orissa Chief Minister R. N. Singh Deo to intervene over bills totaling Rs. 13.16 lakhs, which Voltas says were overdue despite an Orissa Government payment guarantee. Masani notes that Voltas had received no useful response from either OMC or the government and requests payment by 25 March.

In his reply dated 21 March 1968, Singh Deo acknowledges that the matter had not previously come to his attention because of his work in the Assembly. He says he has instructed OMC to clear the dues, pay interest for the delay, and make an immediate installment payment. The appended telegram and handwritten note reinforce Voltas’s demand for payment and urge Masani to take up the matter with people who had vouched for the solvency of the Orissa Government. The file documents a specific dispute over public-sector financial obligations and the credibility of a government guarantee, rather than presenting a general policy argument.

Key points

• Masani’s 11 March 1968 letter reports that OMC had not paid Voltas Limited for equipment and spare parts costing Rs. 13.16 lakhs.
• Voltas held both OMC and the Orissa Government responsible, citing the government’s guarantee of payment.
• Masani asks the Chief Minister to ensure that OMC honors its obligation by 25 March, if not earlier.
• Singh Deo replies that the matter had not previously reached his notice and attributes the delay to OMC’s difficulty obtaining a bank loan.
• Singh Deo promises interest on the delayed amount, an immediate installment, and clearance of the bills by the end of the following month at the latest.
• The appended telegram records Voltas’s demand for payment within seven days and its warning that both OMC and the government would be held responsible for consequences.