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Jammu and Kashmir admn, Centre face criticism over power privatisation move
Jammu and Kashmir admn and the Centre are facing criticism over power privatisation move and calling of the army following the strike of power development department employees
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The administration in Jammu and Kashmir and the Central government is facing increasing criticism for the decision of privatisation of the power sector and calling of the army following the strike of power development department (PDD) employees since Friday night plunged major areas of the union territory into darkness.
Mainstream as well as separatist organisations have castigated government’s decision to privatise the PDD department’s assets and proposal to merge JKPDD into the Power Grid Corporation of India. The employees’ strike and the administration’s intransigence have put thousands of J&K residents to extreme hardships amid bone-chilling temperatures and Covid-19 pandemic as hundreds of patients are struggling to keep on to their oxygen concentrators.
People’s Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti connected the issue with the Government of India’s decision of revocation of Article 370.
“Bringing the Army into such matters has further exposed their fake good governance narrative and ensure that people here live in perpetual fear of the jackboot. Such hare-brained tactics and policies will only deepen the sense of alienation and suffocation that people of J&K feel,” Mufti said in a tweet.
The administration in Jammu on Sunday sought the army’s help in the restoration of the essential services by provisioning manpower to man critical electricity stations and water supply sources.
National Conference vice-president Omar Abdullah said it was the failure of the government in J&K.
“The army has been called to operate the power infrastructure in the Jammu division of J&K. There no bigger admission of failure for a civilian administration than to call upon the army, it means a total breakdown of governance has been accepted by the J&K government,” he said late on Sunday night.
On Monday he took on Union power minister RK Singh’s claims that only 15-20% of feeders are affected in Jammu and there is no situation of blackout.
“Mantriji, J&K stretches beyond Jammu city and the plains of Jammu. Can you please find out what is happening in the far-flung areas of Jammu? J&K also includes Kashmir and things are not nearly as rosy as your answer would suggest,” Abdullah said on Twitter.
The All Parties Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq expressed serious concern at the J&K authority’s decision to privatise assets of the power Department J&K and merge it with the Power Grid Corporation of India.
“At no other place in India has such kind of a merger taken place as the authorities are doing here. In this manner it becomes obvious that the policy of seizure of natural resources of J&K by the Government of India continues, naturally leading to anxiety and unease among people and fear for the loss of their resources,” the Hurriyat said in a statement.
