Probe electrocution of three power employees, says BMS

Himachal Pradesh Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) has taken a strong exception of three fatal accidents of technical employees of the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Ltd (HPSEBL) in the recent past. Three employees lost their lives while working on power lines during the past one week.

Advertisement

Madan Rana, state president of the BMS, while addressing media persons here last evening, demanded judicial inquiry and action against those officials of the HPSBL responsible for these mishaps.

He said T-Mate Ajay Kumar, a young employee working in Indora electrical sub division, was electrocuted on Monday while working on an 11 kv high tension power line. Earlier, two employees had lost their lives in Sujanpur and Shimla last week. Holding the management of the HPSEBL responsible for these fatal accidents, Rana said that huge shortage of technical staff in the state had overburdened the scanty manpower in the HPSEBL. “Such fatal accidents have been happening repeatedly and the hapless families of the deceased employees are losing their bread earners,” he lamented.

Rana demanded the state government to constitute a committee in which representatives of the BMS should be included for improving the working conditions and to ensure risk-free lives of technical employees in the HPSEBL. He also demanded to fill vacant lying posts, especially in technical fields. He said the massive workload resulting due to staff shortage is forcing the technical employees to compromise with the safety protocols.

Meanwhile, state Electricity Pensioners Forum led by state vice president Pawan Mohal held a protest demonstration here from Chogan to Civil Hospital against the management of the HPSEBL and observed a two-minute silence to offer condolences on the demise of the young technical employee. Mohal lamented that in 1990 the employees’ strength was 43,000 when power consumers were only nine lakh but now the strength had declined to 13,000 and consumer number increased to around 29 lakh in the state whereas as many as 8000 posts in the HPSEBL were lying vacant.