Chandigarh, July 26 (IANS) Punjab Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) president and minister Aman Arora on Sunday urged the striking Punjab State Power Corporation Ltd (PSPCL) employees to withdraw the statewide strike, saying it “is causing immense hardship to farmers during the crucial paddy transplantation season and disrupting essential services for nearly three crore people”.
Saying the government is always ready for dialogue, he stated that a high-level committee constituted 25 days ago at the employee unions’ request is already deliberating on their pending demands and assured that every genuine recommendation of the committee will be accepted by the government.
Arora said, “Power corporation employees have been on strike since July 21, causing considerable inconvenience to the people of Punjab, especially our farmers. The ongoing paddy transplantation season is at a crucial stage, and disruption of electricity services has added to the hardships faced by farmers. Besides farmers, domestic consumers, traders, our mothers, sisters and the general public are also facing serious inconvenience due to disruption in power-related services.”
He said the Bhagwant Mann government is a government for every section of society. “Since assuming office, it has taken several historic decisions for the welfare of employees. The government has provided jobs to thousands of youth in various departments, regularised thousands of contractual employees, extended them service benefits and resolved several long-pending demands of employees across different departments. Many demands of the power board employees have already been accepted by the government.”
The Cabinet Minister said regarding the remaining demands, it was the employee unions themselves who requested the government to constitute a special committee for discussions with representation from both the government and the unions. Acting on their request, the government constituted a high-level committee around 20 to 25 days ago. The committee comprises senior officers from the Finance, Power and Personnel Departments along with four representatives of the employee unions.
The committee has been continuously deliberating on these issues, and the government is fully prepared to consider every genuine demand with empathy and a positive approach, Arora added.
–IANS
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