Himachal power staff protest privatisation of Chandigarh electricity dept

In Shimla, the employees and engineers protested against the privatisation outside the board headquarters, Kumar House

To show solidarity with the electricity employees of Chandigarh, the joint front of Himachal Pradesh Electricity Board Employees and Engineers held a statewide protest during lunch break against the privatisation of Chandigarh power department.

A memorandum was also sent by the front to the President of India through the governor against the privatisation of electricity departments. (HT File)

In Shimla, the employees and engineers protested against the privatisation outside the board headquarters, Kumar House. The protest was led by the National Coordination Committee of Electricity Employees and Engineers (NCCOEEE).

A memorandum was also sent by the front to the President of India through the governor against the privatisation of electricity departments.

A detailed memorandum submitted to the President of India outlines the grave concerns arising from the privatisation of profitable and well-managed public utilities. The document argues that such moves will inevitably lead to higher electricity tariffs for consumers, erode workers’ rights and benefits, and ultimately compromise India’s energy sovereignty.

On this occasion, joint front convener Lokesh Thakur said the electricity department of the Union Territory of Chandigarh was sold to a company by the central government in 2021 for a mere ₹871 crore. At the same time, full preparations have been made to give power companies to private hands in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, in some places, tenders have even been placed to give it to private hands.

Joint front co-convenor Heera Lal Verma described the delay in implementation of old pension in the electricity board by the state government as unfortunate and expressed concern over the decreasing number of employees in the electricity board and demanded immediate new recruitments to maintain better services to the consumers in the state government. He demanded to restore the services of 81 outsourced drivers who were fired and to restore the posts of 51 engineers who were abolished.