Press Statements by Central Trade Unions on Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2022 / Postal Employees strike

08th August 2022

Press Release by CTUs, Sectoral Independent Sectoral Federations and Associations

That ELECTRICITY (Amendment) Bill, 2022 is a prescription for privatizing electricity distribution, is a known fact. That is why the Samyukt Kisan Morcha has demanded that the Bill should be scrapped. The National Co-ordination Committee of Electricity Employees and Engineers (NCCOEEE) have taken pains over the entire past year to explain to the ordinary people how Electricity will become a luxury item if the Bill is passed. They have approached all the State Governments, MPs of various political parties to seek their views. Several of them visited the day-long programme organized by the NCCOEEE in Constitution Club, Delhi on 2nd August, 2022 and voiced their opposition to the Bill. They had come adjusting their engagements in the Parliament and said that the Bill was not listed in the business to be transacted in the Parliament.

But it is no surprise that the Central Government seeks to table the Bill during the week starting from 8.08.2022. They are committed to privatise everything at their Masters’ bidding! That Electricity forms a part of concurrent list in the Constitution hardly matters to them, since Federalism does not form a part of their idea of Governance.

It needs to be noted that 13 non-BJP State Governments have opposed the Bill.

We, the Central Trade Unions, give whole-hearted support to the programme that NCCOEEE have chalked out and will urge their members to take active part in it:

1. Cease work and hold Demonstrations on 8th August 2022 at respective offices;

2. On 9th August take part in the demonstrations called by Samyukt Kisan Morcha against E A Bill 2022.

We assure the NCCOEEE and the Samyukt Kisan Morcha of our continued support against the Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2022 which is anti-people and will make electricity unaffordable for ordinary people and the Farmers.

The Joint Platform of CTUs and Federations/Associations calls upon the mass of common people to rise to the occasion and extend active support to the united struggles of the working people in various sectors, including the Electricity Sector to resist and decisively defeat the anti-people, anti-national, destructive policy regime of the BJP Government.

INTUC AITUC HMS CITU AIUTUC TUCC SEWA AICCTU LPF UTUC And Independent Sectoral Federations and Associations

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PRESS RELEASE

9.08.2022

CTUs support the decision of the Postal Employees to strike work on 10.08.2022

The CTUs take note of the decision taken jointly by various unions of the Postal Employees to go on strike on 10th August, 2022, against Central Government’s move to corporatise and then to privatise Postal Service.

Various sections of government departments/establishments are being forced to go on strike because the Government’s adamant stand on privatizing everything that they put into National Monetisation Pipeline, through multi pronged routes viz., aggressive pursuit of corporatisation, outsourcing of various services of postal department to outside agencies, casualisation and temporarisation of substantial section of workforce with precarious service conditions and non-filling of sanctioned regular vacancies etc.

It started with the sale of Air India, followed by the LIC IPO, Railway stations, Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2022 and now, the Postal Department is up for grabs!

It is a known fact that eversince private courier services were allowed, the cost of posting has not only shot up, but the service is not available for rural areas, just like private versus public sector banks, private versus public road transport, where the private entities do not go to rural areas, on the same plea that “there, the business is not profitable”. BSNL is a prime example where a good PSU was deliberately killed by this Government to favour private mobile service providers. The Government, through the Railways, is putting pressure on the Postal Department to shift their cartage to road transport – where private sharks are waiting !

CTUs stand with the Postal Employees in their opposition to privatise the postal service. CTUs also support their demands for filling up large number of vacancies and improving other service conditions.

The Joint Platform of CTUs and Federations/Associations calls upon the mass of common people to rise to the occasion and extend active support to the united struggles of the working people in various sectors, including the Postal Sector to resist and decisively defeat the anti-people, anti-national destructive policy regime of the BJP Government.

Privatisation through multi pronged routes viz., aggressive pursuit of corporatisation, outsourcing of various services of postal department to outside agencies, casualisation and temporarisation of substantial section of workforce with precarious service conditions and non-filling of sanctioned regular vacancies etc.

INTUC AITUC HMS CITU AIUTUC TUCC SEWA AICCTU LPF UTUC And Independent Sectoral Federations and Associations