M A I N   N E W S

UP powermen strike work

LUCKNOW, Jan 15 (PTI, UNI) — The UP Government today went ahead with its move to trifurcate the state electricity board (UPSEB) even as power workers went on an indefinite strike in defiance of the court order, resulting in a “considerable” drop in electricity generation throughout the state.

The state government issued a notification trifurcating the board into the UP Power Corporation, the UP Hydro Power Corporation and the UP Thermal Power Corporation to increase efficiency in the power sector and cut down losses.

Technicians from the Army and engineers of the NTPC and the NHPC were deployed to man the power stations and the government asked an estimated one lakh striking employees to return to work within two days or face disciplinary action, including dismissal.

Central forces were deployed in strength at power stations and other vital installations to prevent the striking employees from indulging in sabotage and to maintain law and order.

The striking employees, who are protesting against the government’s decision, should return to work within the next two days or face dismissal, state Energy Minister Naresh Aggarwal said admitting that there had been a “considerable” drop in power generation.

Reports from districts said several areas went without power and maintenance work was minimal due to the strike.

Altogether 130 striking employees, including office-bearers of the Powermen Joint Action Committee, were arrested for disrupting the power supply, an official spokesman said.

Reports reaching the state headquarters said the power employees’ strike had badly affected the power system of the state with many of the cities facing acute crisis.

The boycott of the work by the employees as a prelude to the strike had already posed problems to the consumers and the total strike added to their woes.

A report from Kanpur said the industrial city was without power since yesterday with 90 per cent of power employees on strike. A report from Dehra Dun said that Doon valley had also to face severe power crisis.

Another report from Gorakhpur said adequate arrangements had been made in Maharajganj, Kushinagar, Deoria and Gorakhpur and the trainee engineers of polytechnic, and the PWD had been pressed into service .

The Principal Secretary (Energy) Harish Chandra Gupta said the engineers from the National Grid Corporation, the NTPC and the Ahmedabad Power Supply Company had reached the major power installations of the state to assist the local authorities.

A report from Kanpur said at least 133 powermen were arrested from the Panki thermal power station and the Chakeri and Nawabganj sub-stations here for striking work.

Striking powermen courted mass arrest at several places in the state.

According to the power employees joint action committee, the striking employees of Obra, Anpara, Pipri, Tanda, Paricha, Harduaganj and Panki reached police station and offered themselves for arrest. In the state capital 300 empolyees including 40 women, courted arrest.

The joint action committee leaders condemned the arrest of their senior leader Girish Pandey even before the strike began. They said they would challenge in the Supreme Court, the high court judgement declaring their strike as illegal.

They claimed that power generation in Tanda, Panki, Harduaganj and Paricha was disrupted and only one unit at Napara and three at Obra were working.

Commenting on the statement of Energy Minister Naresh Agarwal about retrenchment of the employees, the leaders said the minister confirmed their apprehension over large scale retrenchment after the split of the state electricity board.

The state capital was also going through acute power crisis as many of the urban areas remained without power for third day in succession.

The UP Energy Minister had to face several unpleasant questions regarding power situation in Lucknow, the constituency of the Prime Minister. His claimed that the power situation was normal in the state capital.

Principal Secretary (Home) V.K. Mittal said adequate security personnel had been deployed at all the major power installations of the state and the District Magistrates asked to ensure security of the power stations.

Northern grid ‘may collapse’

NEW DELHI, Jan 15 (PTI) — A group of power sector employees’ associations today said there was serious danger that the entire northern grid may collapse if the strike by Uttar Pradesh State Electricity Board employees was not resolved.

“Power systems are very capital intensive and any damage caused would result in loss of thousands of crores of rupees both in capital and revenue,” a joint statement from seven employees unions, including the All India Power Engineers Federation and the NTPC Executive Federation of India (NEFI), said here.

Protest over ST by Delhi traders
Tribune News Service and agencies

NEW DELHI, Jan 15 — Many markets remained closed today in the Capital as thousands of traders staged a demonstration at Old Secretariat in protest against the imposition of uniform sales tax (UST).

The trade bandh, organised under the joint umbrella of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), the Federation of Delhi Trade Associations, the Delhi Vyapar Mahasangh and the Forum of Delhi Trade Associations, was supported by more than 100 leading trade associations.

At least 15 persons, including four policemen, were injured when protesting traders turned violent near the Delhi Assembly, the police said.

The police resorted to lathi charge, water cannons and lobbed tear gas shells to disperse the agitating traders who threw stones at a police party.

About 30 traders, including some office-bearers of the Forum of Delhi Trade Associations (FDTA) were detained by the police after the incident.

The FDTA also threatened to launch non-cooperation with the government by not paying any kind of tax till March 31.

CAIT secretary-general Praveen Khandelwal in a statement issued here said that Delhi was not a producing state and everything traded here came from other states only. “If Delhi is not kept out of the purview of the uniform sales tax policy, it will be losing its distributive character,” he added.

The traders, who criticised the “lethargic” role of the Delhi Government, said “it was a betrayal with the trading community.”

Meanwhile, while the implementation of UST will make Delhiites pay more for petrol, diesel and cooking gas from tomorrow, there is some cheer for other parts of the country with Union Petroleum Minister, Ram Naik indicating that there will be no overall revision of petroleum prices before the Union Budget.

The price of petrol will go up in Delhi by nearly 9 per cent, from Rs 24 to Rs 26 per litre. Diesel will becostlier by 13 paise per litre (Rs 13.91 to Rs 14.04) and cooking gas by Rs six per cylinder (Rs 148 to Rs 154). This was stated by Delhi Finance Minister, Mahinder Singh Saathi while talking to reporters here today.

The rate of kerosene supplied through the public distribution system (PDS) also will go up to Rs 2.70 per litre tomorrow from the existing Rs 2.60 per litre with the levy of 4 per cent sales tax. There is no sales tax on kerosene supplied through the PDS at present.

While sales tax on petrol has been raised from the existing 11 per cent to 20 per cent to bring the tax at par with other states, tax on diesel has been hiked from 11 to 12 per cent.

Mr Naik told a private TV channel that the government was unlikely to increase prices of petrol and diesel before the Union Budget as the Finance Ministry was currently considering a proposal to transfer about Rs 7000 to Rs 8000 crore to bridge the oil pool account.

While 15 items, including pasteurised milk, poultry feed, cattle feed, processed salt, handmade safety matches and life saving drugs have been exempted from sales tax under the UST package, 11 items, including loose tea, computers, all kirana items, plastic raw materials, electronic components and tractors have been shifted from higher tax slab to the 4 per cent slab.

Sales tax on electronic goods, electrical goods, and photographic goods will go up from 6 per cent to 8 per cent, on surgical goods, diesel locomotives, hand pumps and timber the tax will go up from 7 per cent to 8 per cent.

The products which will be cheaper due to reduction in sales tax include maize produce (from 7 per cent to 4 per cent), cement (from 10 per cent to 8 per cent), furniture (from 12 per cent to 8 per cent) and tyre and tubes (from 10 per cent to 8 per cent).

Under the new UST package, the Delhi Government expects to generate an additional revenue of Rs 300 crore per annum, Mr Saathi said.