Punjab Power Minister Harbhajan Singh appeals to striking PSPCL employees to return to work

Chandigarh (Punjab) [India], August 12 (ANI): Punjab Power Minister Harbhajan Singh on Monday appealed to employees of Powercom, also known as the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL), currently on strike, to call off their agitation and return to work immediately in the larger public interest, especially amid peak summer demand for electricity.
Highlighting the critical need for uninterrupted power supply to households, agriculture, and industries, the Minister cautioned that prolonged strikes could cause severe hardship to millions of consumers.
He assured the workforce that the state government, led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, had acted with sincerity and urgency to address their concerns.
"The government assures that the supply will remain uninterrupted and that consumers will not face any inconvenience," Singh told ANI.
Providing details of recent developments, Harbhajan Singh said that a high-level meeting was held on August 10 at Punjab Bhawan between the PSPCL administration and representatives of the Powercom Employees' Joint Forum and Bijli Mulazam Ekta Manch.
The meeting, jointly chaired by him and Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, resulted in the PSPCL administration agreeing to accept almost all key demands put forth by the employees.
"Yesterday, with the finance minister, we had a four-hour discussion with union representatives to address their demands. There were a few demands that are supposed to be solved at the management level and a few others at the government level. Most of their demands were accepted. However, the established procedures must be followed for implementation," Singh told ANI.
These included the creation of new posts and filling of vacancies, enhancement of the ex-gratia amount, halting recovery in compassionate cases until a final decision, cashless medical facilities for employees, release of pending allowances, clearance of overdue overtime payments for grid substation staff, and certain cases of pension revisions.
The government also committed to prioritising the repair and maintenance of PSPCL buildings.
"Given that most of the demands have been addressed, it is now neither fair nor reasonable for employees to continue their strike," the Minister said.
He reiterated that the state government remains committed to employee welfare and is always open to constructive dialogue on any outstanding issues.
Harbhajan Singh urged the employees to rise above the agitation and consider public welfare, emphasising that unity between the workforce and administration is vital to making Punjab's power sector stronger, more efficient, and consumer-friendly.
Expressing confidence in a positive response, he said the government's gesture of goodwill should be met with a reciprocal decision by employees to end the strike and resume work without delay.
Such cooperation, he added, would restore normalcy in power supply and strengthen mutual trust between employees and the administration, paving the way for sustained progress in the state's power sector. (ANI)