CHANDIGARH: The National Coordination Committee of Electricity Employees and Engineers (NCCOEEE) has decided to launch a nationwide movement opposing privatization policies pursued by both central and state governments and to hold massive demonstrations against the upcoming Distribution Utility Meet scheduled from 4 and 5 November in Mumbai.
The Distribution utility meet, which centers on the agenda of electricity privatization, has triggered widespread opposition from power sector unions and federations across India.
Shailendra Dubey Chairman of the All India Power Engineers Federation(AIPEF) expressed deep outrage over the privatization-centric agenda of the Mumbai meet, highlighting the involvement of major private players such as Tata Power, BSES Reliance Power, and the Indian Smart Grid Forum. He also criticized the All India Discom Association for acting as a conduit between the government and private entities.
V K Gupta media advisor AIPEF informed that the online meeting was chaired by Subhash Lamba, Vice President of NCCOEEE and attended by Shailendra Dubey, Chairman AIPEF , Ratnakar Rao, Secretary General AIPEF R.K. Trivedi, President AIPDEF , Mohan Sharma and Krishna Bhuyur, Sudip Dutta, Samar Sinha, and others.
On 04 and 05 November, thousands of electricity employees are expected to stage protests at the Sahara Star Hotel in Mumbai, the venue of the Distribution Utility Meet. A memorandum will be submitted to Union Power Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, demanding the cancellation of privatization decisions in Uttar Pradesh and Puducherry, the withdrawal of parallel license grants in Maharashtra’s industrial cities, and the reversal of the privatization move in Chandigarh.
In solidarity, simultaneous demonstrations will be held across all state capitals and project sites nationwide. The committee warned that if privatization policies continue, 2.7 million electricity employees, contractual workers, and engineers will be compelled to escalate the movement nationwide, placing full responsibility on the government and management.
The committee also pledged active support to the ongoing 312-day protest in Uttar Pradesh, calling it historic. It condemned the initiation of privatization in Puducherry and strongly opposed parallel licensing in cities like Navi Mumbai, Pune, Nashik, and Nagpur.
Meanwhile Shailender Dubey, Chairman AIPEF in a letter to Chief Minister Maharashtra asked him to intervene in three days token strike from 09th October, 2025. He should convene an urgent meeting with the representatives of the Action Committee along with top management of the three utilities to amicably resolve the issues through dialogue.
AIPEF demanded that all privatization and restructuring activities in the state’s power utilities should be stopped until comprehensive discussions are held with employees’ and engineers’ federations and the issues are resolved amicably.