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Punjab: Show-cause notice against PSPCL chief engineer withdrawn
The PSPCL later confirmed that the notice had been withdrawn “on administrative grounds” as per the orders of the CMD, PSPCL.
The Punjab government on Tuesday withdrew a show-cause notice issued to Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) chief engineer (aggregate revenue requirement and tariff regulation) Harmohan Kaur following a protest by PSPCL staff.
The notice, issued on November 13, cited Kaur for allegedly failing to report back to duty after her leave request was denied. In response, the Punjab State Electricity Board Engineers’ Association staged a sit-in outside the office of the director (Finance), demanding immediate revocation.
The PSPCL later confirmed that the notice had been withdrawn “on administrative grounds” as per the orders of the CMD, PSPCL.
Documents show that Kaur had taken a half-day casual leave on November 4 to attend a nagar kirtan and subsequently applied for earned leave from November 6 to 21 citing personal reasons. When her leave request was denied, she reportedly reclassified it as medical leave, prompting the disciplinary action. The notice had given her seven days to respond.
While the withdrawal resolved the immediate standoff, engineers described the incident as part of a broader pattern of “high-handedness” and demoralising practices by PSPCL management.
“The work environment has become unsatisfactory, and professional autonomy is being repeatedly compromised,” said a spokesperson for the PSEB Engineers’ Association.
