Villagers' power connections snapped, restored after protest

A stand-off followed between some families in Kartarpur villages with  Powercom employees as teams of the Powercom department visited these villages to cut connections of the residents - mostly poor labourer families - for outstanding power bills.

As soon as Powercom officials started the process of snapping their electricity connections at Para village and Dhirpur at Kartarpur, labourers under the leadership of the Pendu Mazdoor Union, Punjab, opposed the officials and employees and gheraoed them. Workers raised slogans forcing the officials to re-connect some disconnected connections.

At Para village, Additional Superintendent Engineer of Powercom Division, Kartarpur, Vinay Sharma visited to pacify them. He said the connections of workers, which were disconnected, would be restored, following which labourers pacified.

Pendu Madoor Union's state press secretary Kashmir Singh Ghugshore and youth wing leader Gurpreet Singh Cheeda alleged that the officials had backed by the Bhagwant Mann government.

Ghugshore said, "The government had given the slogan of change but nothing has been changed. These workers are not in a position to pay bills. The government should waive the amount. During the meetings with the joint front of rural labour organisations under the chairmanship of Cabinet Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, a promise was also made to eliminate these pending arrears," he added.

Additional Superintending Engineer Vinay Sharma, Powercom, could not be contacted despite repeated attempts.