CHANDIGARH: Thousands of power employees and engineers from different states, including Punjab and Haryana , will hold a massive rally in Delhi on November 23 to oppose the proposed electricity bill and privatisation of the energy sector by the Centre.
All India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF) Spokesperson said here on Monday that the rally will start from "Ramlila Maidan and proceed toJantar Mantar”. The mass awakening conferences are going on in every state of the country against the bill for the last four months and this will culminate into a massive demonstration in New Delhi.
He said besides opposing the Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2022, power engineers and employees are demanding an old pension scheme and regularisation of all outsourced employees.
V K Gupta said that although Lok Sabha has referred Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2022 to the Standing Committee on Energy, till date the standing committee has not held any discussions with power employees or electricity consumers who are the biggest stakeholders.
V K Gupta said that the power sector needs to be chaperoned by planning rather than market forces. The amendments planned to the Electricity Act 2003 would lead to the privatization of the power distribution sector across the country .This would burden the poor, middle class, and farmers with huge tariff increases in due course of it.
He said any unilateral action to get the Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2022 passed in Parliament without taking the electricity employees and engineers across the country into confidence would be strongly opposed and all 27 lakh electricity employees and engineers of the country will be forced to resort to a nationwide strike in protest against the move.