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PSPCL staff protest proposed sale of 10 properties in Ludhiana
Circle-level demonstration staged at chief engineer’s office; statewide agitation planned on November 2 if demands not met
Employees of Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) staged a protest outside the office of the chief engineer in Sarabha Nagar, Ludhiana, opposing the state government’s plan to sell ten properties owned by the corporation, spread over 50.787 acres in the city.
The protest was organised to demand the withdrawal of the proposed sale, which union leaders say threatens the corporation’s autonomy and future expansion. They allege that most of the properties were donated by village panchayats and private individuals decades ago for public service, to establish substations, offices and power grids to meet the city’s growing electricity demand.
The unions and PSPCL staff claim that selling these lands for commercial purposes would be legally wrong and harm future capacity-building efforts.
The properties proposed for sale include Power Colony No 2, Sarabha Nagar (21.04 acres), land near GT Road (13.25 acres), Power Colony No 1, Sarabha Nagar (11.12 acres), land near CMC Division at Miller Ganj (2.92 acres), and land at BRS Nagar (1.189 acres). Additional sites under consideration are land at Pakhowal Road (0.698 acres), a three-story building at Phuhara Chowk (0.225 acres), another three-story building on Daresi Road (0.206 acres), property at Bassian (0.125 acres), and E Substation, Subhani building (0.014 acres).
Senior union leaders said the protest was organised at the circle-level office to demand immediate withdrawal of the government’s decision. They announced a second protest outside the chief engineer’s office on October 29 and warned that if the Punjab government and power minister Sanjeev Arora do not meet their demands, a statewide protest will be staged on November 2 outside the minister’s residence in Ludhiana. They added that the struggle will continue until the proposed sale is revoked and will be intensified as necessary.
The union leaders also highlighted that in 2016, the Akali-BJP government had attempted to sell two PSPCL properties, but employee agitation had forced the government to withdraw the decision. They alleged that the current Bhagwant Mann-led government has gone further by adding eight more valuable properties, taking the total tally of proposed properties for sale to ten, along with sixteen other less valuable properties, including agricultural land.
The protest was organised jointly by multiple unions and employee groups, including the Joint Forum, Bijli Ekta Manch, Grid Union, Pensioners’ Unions, Technical Service Union, PSEB Employees Federation (AITUC), Grid Substation Union, Powercom, and Transco Pensioners’ Union (AITUC) among others.
State power minister Sanjeev Arora had earlier responded on the issue. “We have proposed to lease or sell these properties under the existing Punjab government’s OUVGL (Optimum Use of Vacant Government Lands) scheme, which predates our government. This initiative aims to utilise vacant lands across all government departments, not just PSPCL. Surveys are being conducted to identify areas that are underutilised or in a cramped state, and no lands earmarked for grids or power substations will be touched. This move will help clear debts and support overall development,” Arora had said.
