Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, July 18: Power Employees and Engineers Coordination Committee (PEECC) today held a meeting of its constituent members here in Jammu supporting the call of National Coordination Committee of Electricity Employees and Engineers (NCCOEEE) for nationwide protest on 10th August against the introduction of the Electricity Amendment Bill.
The Electricity Amendment Bill 2021 has been listed for tabling in the monsoon session of Parliament. NCCOEEE demanded that it should not be rushed through and instead should be referred to the standing committee on energy of Parliament. It said that the main stakeholders i.e. power consumers and power employees should be given the opportunity to place their view point before placing it in Parliament.
The Central Government has not made any effort to discuss the issues with engineers and employees. The move to de-license power distribution is no way to ensure efficient and cost-effective electricity supply to the citizens. Unless the reform is designed scrupulously, taking into account ground realities, the well-intended objective of ‘choice to consumers’ may not be fulfilled.
The meet further said that Electricity Act 2003 allowed the privatization of generation through delicensing and now the proposed Bill will pave the path for the privatization of power distribution through its delicensing. Private power companies will go for cherry picking in supplying electricity to consumers and will prefer to supply electricity to only high revenue earning industrial and commercial consumers which will drive state discoms to further bankruptcy.
The move to abolish the cross-subsidy in a time-bound manner and proposing a Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) to such consumers by the state Governments will snatch away the rights of access to electricity for farmers and poor domestic consumers.
The constituent members who participated in the meeting were Jaipal Sharma (president DEA), Sachin Tickoo (general secretary, JKEEGA), Sanjeev Bali (president PPEU), Anil Slathia (Lineman and Workers Union), Jasbir Singh (ITI Employees Union), H D Singh, TEF, Parshotam Kumar, CNGEU, Balbir Singh (president, Draftsman Union) and Kulbir Singh (EEU).
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