Morcha slams power amendment Bill, announces statewide agitation in Punjab

The Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) has announced a series of state-wide protests against the Electricity Amendment Bill 2025.

The agitation will begin with memoranda at DC offices on December 1, followed by a symbolic two-hour rail blockade on December 5, removal of prepaid meters on December 10, sit-ins at DC offices on December 17 and 18, and will culminate in a rail roko agitation on December 19 if demands remain unmet.

The announcement was made during a press conference in Ludhiana today, where senior leaders from Kisan Mazdoor Morcha — Sarwan Singh Pandher, Manjit Singh Rai and Dilbag Singh Gill — criticised Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and all political parties for remaining silent on the issue.

They alleged that the Centre’s move to push the Electricity Amendment Bill amounts to an attack on Punjab’s rights and claimed that political parties’ silence reflected a tacit agreement. The leaders demanded that the Punjab government immediately convene a special session of the Vidhan Sabha to pass a resolution against the Bill.

Detailing their demands, the morcha called for repeal of the Electricity Amendment Bill 2025, an end to privatisation of the power sector, recruitment of permanent staff in place of contractor-based employment and halting the installation of chip-based smart meters.

They also demanded cancellation of India’s zero-tariff import agreements with the US for cotton, soybean, maize and dairy products, withdrawal from free trade agreements and restoration of punitive provisions in Punjab’s Water Pollution Control Act.

The leaders further sought withdrawal of cases against farmers related to stubble burning, compensation of ?3.77 crore for losses suffered during the Shambhu and Khanauri border protests, cancellation of railway notices and relief for families of farmers who died or were injured during agitations.

Highlighting the devastation caused by floods during the monsoon, the morcha demanded comprehensive compensation, including ?1 crore per deceased, ?70,000 per acre for crop loss, ?1 lakh per family as displacement allowance, and debt waivers. They insisted that farmers whose lands were washed away by rivers should be allotted equal land elsewhere or compensated under the Land Acquisition Act 2013.