UP power employees observe ‘Black Day’ to protest privatisation move

Hundreds of employees gathered at the Shakti Bhawan headquarters in Lucknow and the Madhyanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam office to express their dissent. Similar protests unfolded in Varanasi, Prayagraj, Kanpur, Agra, Meerut, Gorakhpur, and Jhansi, involving engineers, contractual workers, and employees from all energy corporations.

Power engineers and employees across Uttar Pradesh marked the New Year as a “Black Day” in protest against the proposed privatisation of Purvanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam and Dakshinanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam. Demonstrators, organised under the UP Vidyut Karmchari Sanyukt Sangharsh Samiti, wore black armbands and formed human chains in multiple city offices.

The Samiti leaders stated that a “Bijli Panchayat” would be organised in Prayagraj on January 5 (Sourced)

Hundreds of employees gathered at the Shakti Bhawan headquarters in Lucknow and the Madhyanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam office to express their dissent. Similar protests unfolded in Varanasi, Prayagraj, Kanpur, Agra, Meerut, Gorakhpur, and Jhansi, involving engineers, contractual workers, and employees from all energy corporations.

“In Lucknow, a large number of employees joined hands at Shakti Bhawan and staged a symbolic protest. Similar human chains were formed in major cities to oppose privatisation,” said Samiti convenor Shailendra Dubey.

Marking their discontent, protesters boycotted the power corporation management and refrained from extending New Year greetings to the managing directors of Purvanchal and Paschimanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam.

The Samiti leaders stated that a “Bijli Panchayat” would be organised in Prayagraj on January 5 as part of their statewide awareness efforts.