Chandigarh, December 3
Anger is building up among engineers of the PSEB over the transfer of the Chief Engineer, Mr Padamjit Singh, who had been handling the crucial Department of System Operations, allegedly under pressure from a powerful private firm.

Informed sources said following a telephone call from Chandigarh, Mr Padamjit Singh, known for his honesty, was transferred to “nowhere”. In other words his transfer orders have been issued in such haste that his next place of posting was not even mentioned in these orders. The sources said the transfer orders were issued immediately after a meeting of the whole-time members of the PSEB last evening.

Agitated over the way Mr Padamjit Singh has been transferred, the PSEB Engineering Association has called an emergency meeting of its executive committee tomorrow at Patiala to plan its strategy to hit back at the management on the issue.

Mr M.S. Bajwa, president of the PSEB Engineers Association, told The Tribune on the phone today that the “engineering community” was feeling humiliated over the way Mr Padamjit Singh had been unceremoniously removed from his post. On the face of it, it appeared to be a deep-rooted conspiracy — a result of the “nexus among bureaucrats and the private company — which saw Mr Padamjit Singh getting transferred from the board’s management, he said.

“If the PSEB management could treat a Head of the Department in such a manner under pressure, then such a management could play havoc with the overall interests of the board”, said another senior office-bearer of the association.

The sources alleged pressure was constantly brought on Mr Padamjit Singh to clear the case of a private firm for supply of power to the PSEB worth several crores per month after buying it from a Orissa-based power company. They said Mr Padamjit Singh put his foot down and said that first the firm should furnish all documents and the agreement it had signed with the Orissa-based power company. However, the firm did not furnish the requisite documents and Mr Padamjit Singh, refused to entertain its case, the sources added.

In fact, earlier in October also, the private firm was given a chance to furnish the documents. The PSEB had signed a draft agreement with the firm directing it to furnish the relevant documents for verification within 10 days. However, the firm failed to do so. Then the PSEB authorities turned to the Power Trading Corporation (PTC), a government organisation, to sign an agreement for supply of power. The PTC agreed to supply power at Rs 2.07 per unit on November 7. However, the private firm again started exerting pressure and moved a proposal to supply power at Rs 2.06 per unit. Mr Padamjit Singh, the sources said, refused to buckle under pressure and insisted on fulfilling the formalities.

“Without verifying the track record of any private firm with regard to supply of power and its experience etc and source of supply, one can not blindly sign an agreement with such a firm”, said a top PSEB official. Moreover, the firm was putting political and bureaucratic pressure from Chandigarh whereas it should have come through the proper channel.

An important question regarding this controversy is why has the PSEB not floated tenders for the supply of power to it from surplus sources. Secondly, why was the private firm’s case directly accepted by the PSEB management?