State power engineers’ assn protests officer’s suspension

Donning black badges, members of the Haryana Power Engineers’ Association (HPEA) recently organised protest meetings in various parts of Haryana in support of their demand to cancel the suspension of a Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO) at Sonepat. The association also called for the withdrawal of show-cause notices issued to some officers.

In a formal letter addressed to the Managing Directors of DHBVNL (Hisar), UHBVNL (Panchkula) and HVPNL (Panchkula), the HPEA expressed concern over the lack of transparency and fairness in the decision-making process.

Ravinder Ghanghas, general secretary of the association, said protest meetings were held in various cities, including Hisar, Panchkula, Gurugram, Karnal, Sonepat, Ambala, Yamunanagar, Jhajjar, Rewari and Kurukshetra.

Senior vice-president Baljeet Beniwal said Vicky Gehlawat, SDO, Sonepat, had been suspended without any fault as there was no protocol to provide generator sets during rehearsal programmes.

“There was no power supply disruption during the rehearsal, and only a speaker malfunctioned. All power engineers are disappointed with the suspension of a responsible officer. The suspension is arbitrary and against the principles of natural justice,” Beniwal added.

Even after a month of raising demands, the management had not granted the association an appointment for a meeting, an HPEA spokesperson said.

Show-cause notices were being issued to engineers without any reason, which was not only affecting the efficiency of officers but was also creating a negative atmosphere, the spokesperson added.

The HPEA has requested the administration to take appropriate action to resolve the problem.

Beniwal said, “We hope the management will take corrective measures and resolve these grievances amicably through dialogue and mutual understanding. The current situation is causing unrest among engineers, and immediate action is necessary to uphold the principles of fairness and transparency.”