Nearly 15,000 employees of the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) across the state began their three-day strike on Monday, bringing a large part of the grievances redressal at halt and affecting supplies in some areas.
The PSPCL responded by invoking the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA), issuing a warning of strict penalties. Under the ESMA, striking employees face possible termination, cancellation of promotions for those on probation and even imprisonment of up to three years along with penalties. The directive also states that contractual, work-charged, daily wage and contingent staff participating in the strike risk losing their jobs.
Junior engineers, linemen, clerks and other staff stopped work, creating major challenges for the department to maintain electricity supply.
Among the demands of the protesters were creation of new posts and filling of existing vacancies, increase in ex gratia amount, cashless medical facilities, release of pending allowances, clearance of overtime payments for grid substation staff and some cases of pension revisions, etc
Power minister Harbhajan Singh ETO appealed to employees to return to duty, noting that monsoon-related power faults were frequent during this season. He warned that the ongoing strike could disrupt services to lakhs of people and damage business operations. The minister urged unions to settle the issue through dialogue.
{{/usCountry}}Power minister Harbhajan Singh ETO appealed to employees to return to duty, noting that monsoon-related power faults were frequent during this season. He warned that the ongoing strike could disrupt services to lakhs of people and damage business operations. The minister urged unions to settle the issue through dialogue.
{{/usCountry}}Later, the junior engineers’s association decided to withdraw their mass leave and strike as the minister assured them to resolve their major issues.