New Delhi, Aug. 24: Semiconductors Complex Ltd (SCL) has been hauled up by the parliamentary standing committee on information technology for its inability to arrest the fall in sales and has strongly recommended that a revival plan should be initiated even if it entailed disinvestment.

Semiconductors Complex develops chip designs that are used not only in IT and telecommunications products like computers and mobile phones but also in advanced computing equipment in satellite and defence.

The committee has said SCL was not able to achieve the sales turnover targets in the last two years. The public sector unit could achieve a sales turnover of Rs 40.22 crore (as against a target of Rs 83 crore in 2002-03) and Rs 54.88 crore (against a target of Rs 84.10 crore) in 2003-04.

The committee has shown its concern over the downward revision of targets set by the company for 2004-05 from Rs 91 crore to Rs 70.50 crore.

The report states, “The committee disapproves such a sudden change in targets fixed by SCL. The committee deprecates the lackadaisical approach of the department in fixing the targets.”

The committee has recommended that the Planning Commission’s suggestions should be implemented at the earliest to explore possibilities of merger of SCL with Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) or with Society for integrated circuits technology and applied research (SITAR) or the Gallium Arsenide Enabling Technology Centre (GAETEC).

The Planning Commission has suggested that the department of information technology should form a small group of experts in the department to suggest two to three alternatives for the revival of SCL and desired that the group should submit the report within two months.