CM Nayab Saini says Haryana power employees' strike being called off: ‘There will be no privatisation of any kind’

Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Friday said electricity employees have called off their strike after the state government invoked Section 108 of the Electricity Act, 2003, and directed the Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission (HERC) to review its order permitting a private company to distribute power in Gurugram and Nuh.

Speaking at a joint press conference with representatives of the employees' union in Panchkula, Saini said the government had assured them of its support and that workers would immediately return to duty. He reiterated that the state government opposed privatisation of electricity distribution.

Saini said HERC was an independent body governed by its own legislation and that the state government was required to implement its orders and directives. However, he said the government had now exercised its authority under Section 108 to ask the commission to reconsider the matter and effectively withdraw the provision allowing private distribution.

Quick answers to key questions

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QUESTIONS

The employees’ union opposed a Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission (HERC) order granting a private company a parallel licence to distribute electricity in Gurugram and Nuh. The union said private distribution could affect jobs and affordable power.

Section 108 allows a state government to issue written policy directions to its electricity regulatory commission on matters involving public interest. The commission must be guided by those directions while carrying out its statutory functions.

The state government directed HERC to review its order allowing private power distribution in Gurugram and Nuh. Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini said the government sought to effectively cancel that provision.

Yes. After the government gave assurances and directed HERC to review its order, union representatives said the strike was being called off and employees would immediately return to duty.

Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini said the state government opposed privatisation and that there would be no privatisation of any kind. The government has directed HERC to review the provision permitting private distribution.

The chief minister maintained that the government stood firmly with the electricity employees and would not allow privatisation in the state.

“We have consistently maintained that we stand fully with the electricity employees’ union, and we reiterate that position today. It should be noted that the HERC (Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission) is an independent agency operating under its own Act. Under this Act, it functions, offers suggestions, provides guidance, and issues directives. From time to time, we are also required to implement its orders and directives,” Saini said.

He added, “Today, we have reached a decision. Exercising our authority under Section 108, the government has directed the HERC to review the matter and effectively cancel that provision...All the office-bearers of the union are present here with us for this joint press conference following our discussions. The government has provided full assurances. They have stated that the strike is being called off. Our employees will now immediately resume their duties. Our position is absolutely firm; there will be no privatisation of any kind.”

(This is a developing story. More to come)

About the Author

Garvit Bhirani is a journalist based in Gurugram. He is a Deputy Chief Content Producer at LiveMint, where he covers national and international news stories, focusing on accuracy and compelling storytelling for readers. <br><br> With a total of six years of experience in journalism, he has previously worked with Vaco Binary Semantics for Google, taking on the role of news curation lead, and reported from the field on health, education, and agriculture stories for 101reporters and News9. He has also served as a content editor for entertainment and news media organisations. <br><br> Garvit holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism and mass communication from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University and Gurugram University, respectively. During college days, he joined India’s only non-profit student journalism network, where he anchored daily news updates and produced his own weekly show called ‘Data Fix’. <br><br> He was selected for the YES Foundation Media for Social Change Fellowship in Delhi, the Talking Data to the Fourth Pillar residential workshop, and the VOICE Fellowship in Pune. <br><br> He holds certificates in COVID-19-verification reporting, data journalism, food & agriculture, tech policy, media literacy and countering misinformation, and tackling election disinformation courses from Thomson Foundation, IndiaSpend, The Dialogue, US Mission in India, and AFP. <br><br> He can be reached on <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/garvit-bhirani">LinkedIn</a> or on <a href="https://x.com/GarvitBhirani">@garvitbhirani</a> on X