Part 2
Report by Kamgar Ekta Committee (KEC) correspondent
On 22 March 2025, a Conference Against Electricity Privatisation and Smart Meters was organized in Nashik (Maharashtra) by Kamgar Ekta Committee (KEC), along with a few unions of electricity workers, engineers, and officers. Activists of Communist Ghadar Party of India, Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India (Marxist), CPI-ML (Red Flag), AITUC, CITU, AISF, Andhashraddha Nirmulan Samiti, Maharashtra State Bank Employees Federation, All India Bank Employees Association, and pension associations also participated in the meeting in big numbers.
The Report of the meeting was divided in two parts. The Part 1 covered the main points of the speeches of Com. Arun Mhaske of Maharashtra State Electricity Workers Federation (MSEWF), Com. Girish, Joint Secretary of Kamgar Ekta Committee and Com. DL Karad, State Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).
In the Part we are presenting the main points of the speeches of Adv. Abhay Taksal, State Executive Member of the Communist Party of India, Aurangabad, Dr. Sanjeewani, Vice President of the Lok Raj Sangathan and Com. VD Dhanavate, District President of All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC).
Adv. Abhay Taksal, State Executive Member of the Communist Party of India, Aurangabad, stressed that electricity is a fundamental need. By privatizing electricity, private companies are trying to take ownership of natural resources. Thus, this is a fight about ownership of resources. The government is supposed to be the manager or trustee of public assets, not the owner. We are the owners of public assets. Then what right does the government have to sell our assets? By privatizing any public asset or unit, the government is in fact saying that it is incapable of managing it!
The issue of smart meters and electricity privatisation is important. There have been agitations in many places and people have taken the matter to courts. However, courts simply say that they will not interfere in state policies.
Adv. Taksal said that smart meters are being installed directly for new connections in Aurangabad, without informing consumers. Those who previously received bills of Rs. 500-600 are now getting bills of over Rs. 2000 for the same amount of consumption!
When Jio increased its rate, we could not argue or negotiate by calling their call center. Similarly with smart meters, private companies will be able to increase power rates at their own whim. Moreover, despite government claims, we should remember that postpaid meters can easily be converted into prepaid.
In Aurangabad, members of the Communist Party of India distributed leaflets and stickers about smart meters to around 10,000 houses. The stickers stated that smart meters and the consequent increase in power rates are looting our hard-earned money. They broadcasted audio messages through mega mics installed on rickshaws. Further, they created a toll-free number and a Google form link that gave information about smart meters.
The government is also promoting solar power, where they will buy power from you at Rs. 3.5 per unit in some hours of the day time and sell power back to you at the rate of Rs. 17! The government tries to divide toilers based on religion, caste, and other divisions. However, the same rate of Rs. 17 will be applicable for all, irrespective of religion and caste! And solar panels will be built on land belonging to us, the toilers. All working and toiling people should unitedly fight these attacks to save our hard-earned money. A people’s movement is the only solution.
Dr. Sanjeewani, Vice President of the Lok Raj Sangathan, said that in our struggle, we must first recognize whom we are fighting against. Who benefits by privatisation of say, electricity distribution? Only the biggest capitalists like Tata, Adani, Torrent, Goenka and so on have the means to take over distribution.
Many of us here are unhappy with the party that has formed the governments at the Centre or in our state. However, how much power do the MPs have? How they vote on a particular issue is not decided by the individual MPs, but by their respective High Commands. These decisions are taken behind closed doors.
Who takes these decisions? For that we have to look at who funds these parties. Do we fund them? No! Tens of thousands of crores are paid by big monopoly capitalists to fund them. Then naturally the policies of elected governments are decided by these very people. Governments have to implement the agenda of the capitalist class!
Even the Finance Minister was not in the picture when a big decision like demonetisation was taken!
Further, it is not just one party that is implementing the smart meter policy. According to data from the website of the National Smart Grid Mission, nsgm.gov. in, 7 lakh smart meters have been installed in Jammu and Kashmir, 14 lakhs in Punjab, 3.25 lakh in Himachal Pradesh, 3.4 lakh in West Bengal, and 1.3 lakh in Tamil Nadu. Thus, various governments are implementing this policy. Even the privatisation agenda has been introduced and implemented by governments of different parties over the years.
It is the capitalist class benefits from the policy of privatisation. Here, we are not thinking of small business and factory owners. There are some 200 capitalist houses in India who have wealth of more than USD 1 billion each, which is around Rs. 9000 crores! The poorest of these capitalists have that much wealth. The richest have a thousand times that. Even if one earns 1 crore a year and does not spend a single rupee of it, it will take the person 9000 years to accumulate 9000 crores! It is obvious that no amount of hard work can earn this wealth; such wealth can be amassed only by exploiting workers.
These very capitalists fund not only parties but also control different arms of the state. We must first recognize that our fight is against them.
Next, we must take inspiration from how others have fought. In Argentina, after railways were privatized, hundreds of railways stations were shut down, thousands lost their jobs, ticket prices shot up and the number of accidents increased. The people of Argentina fought successfully for the re-nationalization of railways in their country.
In our country, the people of Vishakhapatnam, including women and children, have been bravely protesting against the privatisation of the Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited for the past five years! They put up such a fierce fight that they did not allow the finance minister to step outside the airport when he landed in Vishakhapatnam for undertaking work related to privatisation. They have succeeded so far, only because they united across union and party affiliations and mobilized the people at large.
Similarly, in 2021, the workers and citizens of Jammu and Kashmir organized morchas and demonstrations against electricity privatisation in the cold months of winter, even in sub-zero temperatures. Electricity workers ceased all fault repairs as part of their protest, with the support of local citizens. The government called in the military to repair faults, but the military simply could not do it, leading to blackouts in many places. Ultimately, the government was forced to accept the demands of electricity workers.
We have no option but to unite and fight against the increasing attacks against us. At the same time we must ask some really basic questions. Is this really a democracy for us the people, the Lok? If this was really rule of the people, by the people, and for the people, would we have let so many people go hungry? Wouldn’t we have reduced the income gap over the years?
The ruling class divides workers on different bases such as caste and religion. When someone asks us who we are, many people may say we are Hindus, Muslims, Christians, etc. However, our real identity is that of a worker. We should be proud to say we are workers.
Moreover, attacks such as privatisation and smart meters are attacks on everyone. The families of police and army will also suffer if we allow this. So will the ordinary activists of the very parties whose leaders are promoting this policy and trying to implement it. This is an attack on all!
In various places in Maharashtra, Sangharsh Samitis (Struggle Committees) have been formed against smart meters. Similar samitis should be formed in Nashik to take the agitation forward. Women and youth should be encouraged to join.
The young generation today has only experienced private schools, private colleges, etc. They do not realize that it is the government’s responsibility to provide services like education and electricity. Along with physical activities, we should adopt different means like social media to spread awareness about the duties of the government as well as about privatisation and smart meters.
Kamgar Ekta Committee, Lok Raj Sangathan, Maharashtra State Electricity Workers’ Federation, Maharashtra State Bank Employees’ Federation, and more than a 100 other unions and people’s organizations are members of the All India Forum Against Privatisation (AIFAP). The forum is a platform where workers of different sectors and consumers are opposing all types of privatisation. Such united opposition is the need of the hour. We will surely be successful.
Com. VD Dhanavate, District President of All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), emphasized that there is no option but to strongly oppose smart meters. We must spread awareness among the masses.
In the past, electricity workers and citizens fought against Enron and opposed private profit from electricity. We should also remember the role of international bodies like the World Bank in promoting privatisation in India. Taking inspiration from past struggles, we should resolve to fight as soldiers against smart meters.
After the main speeches, the floor was opened for questions and interventions. Participants asked speakers further questions about smart meters and solar power. The meeting ended with slogans of Long Live Workers’ Unity and Long Live Workers’-Consumers’ Unity!