KSEB employees’ protest against Electricity Bill total

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With the Central Government referring the Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2022 to the parliamentary standing committee on energy on Monday amid stiff opposition in Lok Sabha, various trade unions in the KSEB exuded confidence that their statewide protest has been a partial success.The National Coordination Committee of Electricity Employees and Engineers, a broad-based platform of all major federations of power sector employees and engineers, will be huddled in New Delhi on Tuesday evening to take the next course of action.

Union Power Minister R K Singh tabled the Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2022 in the Lok Sabha on Monday. Following opposition, he decided to refer the bill to the parliamentary standing committee on energy for further consultations. The 19-member parliamentary standing committee on energy headed by Rajiv Ranjan alias Lalan Singh of JDU has got a majority of BJP leaders. N K Premachandran, MP, had opposed the bill in Lok Sabha on Monday where he alleged that it went against the constitutional structure of federalism and also against the provisions laid down to legislate on subjects that are in the concurrent list.

On Monday, a majority of KSEB employees boycotted their work and protested against the Centre’s move to allow private companies in the power distribution network.M G Suresh Kumar, president, KSEB Officers Association, told TNIE that just because the Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2022 has been referred to the parliamentary standing committee on energy for wider consultations, it doesn’t mean that the bill has been quashed.

“But the coordination committee meeting of engineers will be able to make the right interventions where they should be able to highlight the consequences of the privatisation move. Though the BJP has got a majority in the parliamentary committee, still the protesting entities should be able to highlight the consequences of privatisation,” said Suresh Kumar.Barring BMS, the other trade unions like CITU, AITUC, INTUC and STU took part in the day-long protest which was total.