Consumers sweat as LESA unions clash
EVEN AS LESA power employees groups fight for one-upmanship, the already sweating consumers are left to brave summers made hotter by erratic power and humid weather.
EVEN AS LESA power employees groups fight for one-upmanship, the already sweating consumers are left to brave summers made hotter by erratic power and humid weather.
On Tuesday, the representatives of the UP Rajya Vidyut Junior Engineers’ Sangthan and those of the UP Bijli Karchari Sangh clashed at LESA’s Residency office compound. Later, both the parties lodged FIRs accusing each other at the Wazirganj police station.
Reports said that around 1.30 pm SDO, Residency, AK Srivastav, JE, Hanuman Setu, RK Dixit along with the staff of the System Switchgear company were trying to fix a power breakdown opposite Residency. However, the Bijli Karmchari Sangh leaders, who have been staging a dharna at the Residency objected to their repair the fault. They have been for a last few days demanding compensation for an employees who died on duty due to electric shock.
While the heated arguments were still going on, some from the opposite started pelting stones injuring JE, RK Dixit a few others. Even assistant engineer and UP Rajya Vidyut Abhiyanta Sangh general secretary, AK Singh was manhandled when he intervened.
As the news spread through telephones, around three-dozen junior engineers and leaders rushed to the spot and created a ruckus. The senior LESA officials were just mute spectators to the ‘tamasha’.
In a press statement, Junior Engineers Sangthan, spokesman, Sanjay Sharma said that the association’s leaders would meet LESA chief general managers, tomorrow to brief him of the entire issue. He alleged within the department there are some anti-social elements that were creating problems. “We are here to work and not to fight with the goons,” he said.
On the other hand, UP Rajya Vidyukt Upbhokta Parishad in a statement said that the consumers were suffering due the power employees’ agitations. “There is no justification for putting people to hardships by not attending power faults to get their demands accepted,” said Parisahd president, Awdhesh Kumar Verma.
He demanded the UPPCL to intervene into the matter immediately.
Get Current Updates on Election 2024, India News, Lok Sabha Election 2024 LIVE along with Latest News and Top Headlines from India and around the world.