Smooth Unbundling of PSEB
Ban orders to be imposed near transmission lines
Jangveer Singh
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 6
The Punjab government has put the unbundling of the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) on fast forward mode by directing the district magistrates to impose prohibitory orders near transmission lines to ensure that power supply is not disrupted once the power reforms come into effect on April 15.

The circular, issued by the state Home Department to all district magistrates, district police chiefs and Police Commissioners, makes the government’s decision to unbundle the state electricity utility before April 15 very clear.

It says that according to government information, some employee organisations could go on strike and try to sabotage power supply and also stop traffic besides attacking government property.

The Home Department has also supplied the list of organisations, including the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta-Ugrahan) and those affiliated to it besides names of specific leaders who could foment trouble. The district police chiefs as well as Police Commissioners have been asked to take pre-emptive action against persons suspected to hinder power supply in any way.

Simultaneously, efforts are on to take the BKU (Ekta-Ugrahan) and other organisations on board. The Chief Minister’s Principal Secretray DS Guru, Additional DGP Intelligence Suresh Arora and SAD leader Prem Singh Chandumajra today held a meeting with representatives of the BKU (Ekta-Ugrahan) group. The government conveyed its plan to unbundle the PSEB and asked the kisan group to convey its apprehensions if any. The group has decided to hold an internal meeting before meeting the Chief Minister on this issue.

In another development, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal met representatives of the PSEB Engineers Association yesterday and assured them that their apprehensions would be addressed fully. The sources said the engineers demanded that the barest minimum be done to comply with the new Electricity Act, 2003. This translates into separating transmission activities and having distribution and generation as one unit. This will result in separation of only 2,500-odd employees for whom a separate transmission company would be created.

The engineers also brought to the notice of the Chief Minister that junior-level bureaucrats were being appointed as heads of new companies so formed after unbundling of electricity utilities as has happened in Haryana. They demanded that engineers only should head the new companies and that they should be selected on merit. The engineers have also demanded signed assurances on the issue of common seniority, group provident fund and pension benefits.

To take all employees on board, the Chief Minister has also fixed a formal meeting with various employees’ unions of the electricity utility on April 9. These include the Joint Forum of Workers that includes the Employees Federation and Technical Service Union besides others. A separate meeting has been fixed with the Council of Junior Engineers.

Meanwhile, the Communist Party of India (CPI) has called for an all-party meeting to discuss the issue of unbundling of the electricity utility. CPI leaders Dr Joginder Dayal and Bhupinder Samber today claimed the government should come clean on how it was going to unbundle the board as the party felt this would result in privatisation of the PSEB.