Industry suffers Rs 70-cr loss in Chandigarh, seeks bill waiver

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 22

Strike by the power employees has cost the industry a huge loss of nearly Rs 60-70 crore on the first day.

“Rs60-70 crore a day is the production loss of Industrial Area alone,” said Naveen Manglani, president, Chamber of Chandigarh Industries.

To compensate for our production losses due to the strike, the Electricity Department must waive our one-month bill, he said, adding that the city had been under siege today. “All industrial employees sat idle, with man and machine on total standstill. How are we going to pay wages. What if the consumers do not pay electricity bills,” he questioned.

Meanwhile, the Chandigarh Beopar Mandal (CBM) demanded the restoration of electricity supply to commercial areas immediately.

The CBM appealed to the striking employees to ensure electricity supply as it being essential services specially to health sector and stores selling perishable goods.

Charanjiv Singh, president, CBM, said the Beopar Mandal issued an appeal to the striking employees and the Administration to resolve the matter amicably ensuring that essential services like electricity must not get interrupted for a long period.

“Not only many shops store perishable essential household goods but many chemists also need some important drugs to be kept in freezers,” he said. The long period of city being without electricity supply brings down the business sentiments and the whole business community had to suffer, he added.

He appealed to the Administration to talk to striking employees not to resort to such harsh step of long strike, otherwise make alternative arrangements so that the ordinary citizens do not suffer any more.

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