Power staff protest privatisation of dept

Employees of the UT Electricity Department, under the banner of UT Powermen Union Chandigarh, today held a protest rally against privatisation of the department.

Addressing the protesters at the Electricity Office, Industrial Area, Phase 1, union general secretary Gopal Datt Joshi strongly opposed the privatisation policy of the Government of India and accused the UT Administration of ignoring the grievances of employees.

Union leaders urged the UT Adviser to not change the employer without giving option to the employees and to not transfer the GPF and MPS amount of the employees to any trust without their consent. They stated that the employees of Electricity Department were governed by the Central Civil Services Rules, which did not have any provision to change the service condition of employees.

They warned that if the Letter of Intent was issued without finalising the transfer policy and signing a tripartite agreement, the union would intensify its agitation. They also stated that another rally in support of their demands will be held on November 22.