Report by Kamgar Ekta Committee (KEC) correspondent
On 26th November, 2024, as part of a nation-wide call given by the All India Federation of Electricity Employees (AIFEE) and its affiliated organisations (including MSEWF) organised a militant demonstration in front of the Divisional Office of Maharashtra State Electricity Board at Vashi, Navi Mumbai. The meeting was addressed by Com. Krushna Bhoyar, General Secretary of MSEWF and by several leaders of MSEWF. Dr. A. Mathew, Secretary, Kamgar Ekta Committee (KEC) and Convenor, All India Forum Against Privatisation (AIFAP) was also invited to address the demonstration.
Dr. Mathew in his speech saluted the struggle being waged by MSEWF, AIFEE and all electricity employees all over the country against privatisation of the power sector. He said your struggle was not only to save your job but a struggle which was in the interest of all working people of this country.
In 1948, after Independence, the Government passed the Electricity Act, which said that supply of electricity to every Indian household was the duty of the Central and State Governments, and it has to be operated under a no loss no profit basis. However, over the years and especially since 1991, when the LPG policy of globalisation through privatisation and liberalisation was introduced by the then Congress Government, the electricity sector has been opened up to enable private monopolies to generate and distribute power. All the Governments at the centre have followed this same policy and the present BJP led Government is speeding up the process. The BJP led Government at the centre introduced the Electricity Amendment Bill 2003 which allowed private monopolies to enter electricity distribution. The present Government tried to take advantage of a national calamity like COVID and a nation-wide lockdown to pass the Electricity Amendment Bill 2020, to further privatise power distribution.
Dr. Mathew said that at present over 50% of all power produced in this country is by private sector monopolies. They want to introduce smart meters all over the country so that the private monopolies will have a ready-made infrastructure in the distribution sector which they can take over.
Smart meters will not only take away 20,000 jobs in Maharashtra alone, but also increase the price of electricity for the consumer. Wherever smart meters have been installed, like in Bihar, Odisha, Jammu and Kashmir, the people have been protesting against increase in electricity bill and only recently in Bargarh District of Odisha, 15,000 farmers removed the smart meters that had been installed in their homes by Tata Power and deposited them in front of the Tata Power offices.
Dr. Mathew pointed out that electricity, just like education, health, water, transport, etc. are the rights of the citizens and it is the Government’s duty to provide these at affordable rates to the citizens. It is the ordinary people who contribute 2/3rd of the Central Governments tax revenues in the form of GST. However, they do not get the services which the Government is duty bound to provide. On the contrary, from the money collected from the people, the big monopolies are given all sorts of subsidies, loan waivers, etc. All essential services such as electricity, health, education, transport etc are being handed over to private sector.
Dr. Mathew said that we workers have to ask ourselves what kind of a democracy do we have where anti-people laws such as 4 labour codes, 3 farm laws, Electricity Amendment Bill and other black laws are passed without taking the opinion of workers, farmers or the working people. What kind of a system do we have, where the rich grow richer every day and the poor get poorer.? Our youth have to work long hours on contract or temporary jobs with no job security. We workers need to think about an alternate system where the economy is run for the welfare of the majority of people and not for a small minority of exploiters.
Com. Krushna Bhoyar explained the demands for which today’s demonstration was being held all over India. He saluted the electricity workers of Maharashtra and all over India for the united struggle being waged under the banner of National Coordination Committee of Electricity Employees and Engineers (NCCOEEE). He said this struggle along with the support received from the farmers has prevented the Central Government from passing the anti- worker anti-farmer anti-people Electricity Amendment Bill 2020 for the last 4 years.
Com. Bhoyar demanded that all outsourced/contract workers should be made permanent and that all vacant posts should be immediately filled. He demanded that the Electricity Amendment Bill 2020 should be scrapped. He demanded a halt to the moves of the Central and State Governments to privatise the power sector. He demanded that the Old Pension Scheme should be implemented for all power workers and engineers. He demanded that all 2500 terminated power sector workers of Uttar Pradesh should be reinstated.
In conclusion he said we have to step up our struggle to stop the attempts at further privatisation of the power sector.
