Amid protests, Army called in to restore power supply in Jammu and Kashmir
The Hindu
Workers of the power department are calling for an end to privatisation
The J&K administration on Sunday called in the Army to ensure streamlined electricity supply for essential services in the Jammu division, in the wake of protests by the employees' umbrella organisation, Power Employees and Engineers Coordination Committee (PEECC), which is opposing the government move to privatise grid stations here.
Raghav Langer, Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, in a letter to the Defence Ministry on Sunday, said, “Due to strike by electric department personnel in the UT of J&K, essential services have been severely affected in the Jammu region. We would like to hereby requisition the Indian Army to assist in the restoration of the said essential services by provisioning manpower to man critical electricity stations and water supply sources.”
Officials said the Army was deployed at various power stations in the Jammu division. Earlier in the day, the Lieutenant Governor's administration failed to negotiate a settlement with the protesting employees, which, according to one estimate, affected 50% the population in the Union Territory.