Posts will be rationalised, not abolished: HPSEBL

Refuting the allegations made by employees, Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Limited (HPSEBL) has clarified that no posts have been abolished in the board. “Himachal Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (HPERC) has directed the Board to reduce salaries and pension expenses of its employees as it was the highest in the country. In view of this, certain categories of posts are being rationalized, not abolished. The recruitment for these posts would be carried out again in the future when required,” said the HPSEBL spokesperson.

The spokesperson further said that the board was now functioning only as a power distributor company, but the generation wing still had 2,161 posts. “Additionally, there are seven Civil SDOs, 30 Civil JEs, 15 Electrical SDOs, 16 Electrical JEs and one post each of Exn (Electric) and SE (Electric). Apart from these posts, other posts such as Mistry, DG Operator, Welder, Telephone Attendant, Gauge Reader, Cook and Ferro Printer were now redundant. These roles would be replaced with T-Mat positions,” he said.

The spokesperson further said that the board had disbursed Rs. 134 crore in the last two months alone towards Dearness Allowance (DA) and arrears of the revised pay scale to the employees and pensioners. “If necessary financial reforms were not taken, the fiscal position of the board could deteriorate further,” he said.