Ropar thermal engineers protest Punjab GovT failure to sign tripartite agreement

Vinod Kumar Gupta
Thursday, 07 October 2010
ROPAR:Ropar thermal plant engineers protested against the failure of the State Government and Powercom management to fulfill the assurances given by Chief Minister Punjab at the time of restructuring of PSEB.
Parmod Sharma Regional Secretary of PSEB Engineers Association said after the regional meeting that engineers lamented that before restructuring of PSEB state government had assured the association that their service conditions, GPF and pensionary benefits shall be protected by signing mutually agreeable tripartite Agreement , but nothing has been done so far in this regard.

The engineers further stressed that the tripartite agreement and other pay related issues are of paramount importance as promulgation of service rules in newly formed corporations for engineers as well as employees, particularly when the Govt has already utilized more than Rs 1800 crore of GPF for other works.

Engineers showed their dismay over negotiations being held by state government with NTPC for awarding Gidderbaha power project to them. PSEB engineers association has been cautioning state Govt that with the execution of this project outside State sector, the share of Punjab in generated power will be marginalized and Punjab will continue to remain in state of power cuts.

Sharma said if the management and state government continued with this indifferent attitude and adopted dilly-dallying approach toward the above, engineers’ body shall be left with no other option but to agitate.