Statement of All India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF)
Following the recent meeting of the Group of Ministers from seven states, the central government is offering states three options on the privatization of electricity; otherwise, central grants to those states will be discontinued.
The first option is: The state government sells 51% stake in electricity distribution corporations (Discoms) and operates the electricity distribution companies under a PPP (Public-Private Partnership) model.
The second option is: Sell 26% stake in electricity distribution companies and hand over management to a private company.
The third option is: States that do not want privatization must register their electricity distribution companies with SEBI and the stock exchange.
In the Group of Ministers’ meeting, it was agreed that grants from the Centre will be stopped for states that do not opt for any of these three options, and no further financial assistance will be provided.
Electricity is on the Concurrent List in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, which means the central and state governments have equal authority in electricity matters. In such a situation, how can the decision on privatization be imposed on state governments based on the opinion of just seven selected states (Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu)?
The sole agenda of the Distribution Utility Meet 2025, scheduled for November 4 and 5 in Mumbai, is also the same – “PPP Models for DISCOMS Sustainability.” It is now clear that the conclusion from this Distribution Utility Meet 2025 will be the same as the opinion from the Group of Ministers’ meeting. It appears that a nationwide campaign for privatization is being aggressively pushed forward.
Interestingly, the All India DISCOM Association (AIDA) is an invited member in all meetings of Group of Ministers. The AIDA is registered under Society Act in which all associations including AIPEF are registered. But the AIDA is being given special status by Ministry of Power and is invited even in official meetings of Ministry of Power (MoP). The AIDA is one of the organisers of Distribution Utility Meet 2025 along with private houses. This is a very serious development. It seems the AIDA has assumed the role of middle man for privatization of DISCOMS.
In Uttar Pradesh, the privatization process is being widely implemented, and power employees have been strongly protesting it for the past 11 months. Now is the time for power employees and engineers across the country to unite and launch a nationwide movement.
Inquilab Zindabad.
AIPEF