Patiala, March 7
All India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF) has announced a major boycott involving lakhs of power sector employees set for March 10 against the proposed tabling of Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2025 in Parliament. “The Draft Bill aims to alter the electricity distribution landscape by allowing multiple distributors to operate in the same region, sharing infrastructure. It also proposes cost-reflective tariffs while planning to eliminate cross-subsidies for industrial consumers over five years”, said, AIPEF’s Chairman, Shailendra Dubey.
In a statement issued in this regard, Dubey further said that feedback of stakeholders was ignored, as the power ministry included pro-privatization groups in legislation discussions. “AIPEF meeting is being held on March 8 at Dehradun to discuss the whole issue”, he informed.
Media Advisor, AIPEF, V.K.Gupta informed that PSEB Engineers’ Association General Secretary Ajaypal Singh Atwal will be leading an eight member delegation to Dehradun. He said that there is no tearing hurry to adopt such drastic and shortcut methods which go against the letter and spirit of democratic functioning. “All the objections raised must be clarified and made evident to all stakeholders so that their objections and points of dissent are duly considered before proceeding any further”, he demanded.
Dubey said that the Bill has been drafted on the basis of the suggestions of the Working Group report, where one of the constituents is the All India DISCOMs Association (AIDA) advocating in favour of the Bill.
Meanwhile, National Coordination Committee of Electricity Employees and Engineers (NCCOEEE) in a letter to Ministry of Power stated that the electricity employees and engineers across the country are being compelled to resort to lightning action on March 10, cease work and come to the streets to hold demonstration against the proposed tabling of the Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2025 in Parliament on March 10. The NCCOEEE has warned the government not to introduce what it calls an anti-farmer, anti-consumer and anti-employee bill and announced that MPs from all political parties will be briefed in Delhi on March 9 about the adverse impact of the proposed legislation.
