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Puducherry warns striking power staff of action on outages
After the government issued a tender on September 27 to a private entity to take over Puducherry’s distribution and retail supply of power, the employees of the Puducherry electricity department began their strike on September 28 to secure their employment in the government until their retirement
Chennai:
Warning the striking power staff, Puducherry home minister A Namassivayam, who holds the electricity portfolio, said on Sunday that severe action will be taken against those who caused electricity outages in the union territory.
“The electricity staff who are responsible for causing hardship and trouble to the public will face stringent action,” Namassivayam said. “Our government will not be a mute spectator to this.”
Puducherry plunged into darkness on Saturday evening as the indefinite strike by electricity workers entered its fourth day against the NDA government’s plans to privatise power distribution operations. Public who were affected also began protesting on the streets and caused road blockades. Power was restored in most places by Saturday night and Namassivayam said that it was fully restored by Sunday noon.
After the government issued a tender on September 27 to a private entity to take over Puducherry’s distribution and retail supply of electricity, the employees of the Puducherry electricity department began their strike on September 28 to secure their employment in the government until their retirement. They want the government to reconsider the move to privatise.
The protests continued on Sunday amidst heavy police deployment. The minister held an emergency meeting with the heads of the electricity and police departments on Saturday and said that the administration has decided to requisition the services of 24 central power grid staff to tackle the situation. Staff in Uttar Pradesh’s power department too organised statewide protests, expressing solidarity with their Puducherry counterparts, on Saturday
Puducherry’s lieutenant governor Tamilisai Soundararajan also warned those protesting to go back to work. “Those cutting off electricity lines and fuses will face severe consequences,” Soundararajan said. “We will register cases and take necessary legal action against those disrupting essential services.”
The opposition in Puducherry has urged the All India N R Congress (AINRC) chief minister N Rangasamy to convene a special assembly session with all parties to discuss the situation.
