Sonipat: Employees of Haryana’s power utilities have stepped up their agitation over a series of policy and service-related issues, warning of a statewide strike from Aug 11 to 13 if the state govt fails to address their demands.As part of the phased protest, power employees on Tuesday observed a three-hour symbolic work boycott, disrupting routine administrative work in electricity offices across Sonipat, Gohana, and several other parts of the state.The protest, organised under the banner of the Haryana Power Employees and Engineers Joint Struggle Front, was held from 9am to noon. Office work slowed considerably during the boycott, delaying file movement and several administrative services.Rajkumar, secretary of the HSEB Workers’ Union, Sonipat, said the ongoing agitation was part of a statewide campaign leading up to the proposed three-day strike. “If the govt fails to take a positive decision on our demands, employees across Haryana will participate in the strike from Aug 11 to 13,” he said.According to Rajkumar, employees gathered at the suburban division office in Sonipat to protest against several govt initiatives, including privatisation of power utilities, the proposed parallel licensing system, the smart metering programme, online transfer policy, and the proposal to create a separate agricultural power distribution corporation.Employee unions argue that these measures would weaken the existing electricity distribution network, increase the financial burden on consumers, and adversely affect employees’ job security and labour rights.Apart from opposing the proposed reforms, the unions have demanded regularisation of contract workers, implementation of equal pay for equal work, restoration of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS), introduction of cashless medical facilities, payment of risk allowance, and resolution of long-pending pay, promotion, and cadre-related anomalies. They have also sought an increase in the promotion quota for junior engineers (JEs) and early disposal of other pending service matters.The unions also strongly opposed the practice of recovering financial losses from employees’ salaries in cases involving transformer damage and power theft. Rajkumar said salary deductions should not be made unless an individual’s negligence was conclusively established through a proper inquiry.“Holding employees financially liable without fixing responsibility is unjust, and the recovery policy should be withdrawn immediately,” he said.As part of the next phase of the campaign, employee organisations plan to reach out to village panchayats, social organisations, and unions from other govt departments to seek support for the proposed strike. Union leaders have urged employees to remain united and ensure the success of the agitation.Seeking support for phased stirThe agitation is being carried out in phases. While division-level meetings and demonstrations were organised on the first day, sub-divisional protests and symbolic work boycotts continued on the second day as unions prepared for the larger statewide strike.Employee organisations maintain that unless the govt initiates meaningful dialogue and addresses their concerns, the planned Aug 11-13 strike could significantly affect the functioning of Haryana’s power utilities.
