Power sector unions under the banner of the National Coordination Committee of Electricity Employees’ and Engineers (NCCOEEE) on Wednesday unveiled a multi-pronged plan of campaign against the KSEB management’s move to adopt the TOTEX model for prepaid smart meter roll-out in Kerala.
From May 15 to 30, union members will call on KSEB consumers to sensitise them about the hidden dangers in the TOTEX model. District-level rallies are planned from June 5 to June 10. On June 20, a protest march attended by 10,000 KSEB employees will be taken out to the KSEB headquarters at Pattom where the subsequent course of action, including strikes, will be announced.
The announcement was made at an NCCOEEE convention attended by around 11 unions representing workers, officers, pensioners, and contract employees of the KSEB including those backed by the CITU, INTUC and AITUC.
At the convention, senior trade union leaders reiterated that their opposition was not to the smart meters, but to the roll-out model proposed by the KSEB management. The TOTEX (total expenditure) model involved the hidden danger of opening up electricity distribution to privatisation, they alleged.
Inaugurating the convention, MP and CITU State general secretary Elamaram Kareem was sharply critical of the KSEB management for giving priority to smart meters, which were eligible for only 15% subsidy from the Centre, over network improvement that could fetch 60% subsidy, under the Centrally aided Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS). The foremost concern should be given for the best interests of the State and the electricity consumers, he said.
INTUC State president R. Chandrasekharan said pivatisation should not be at the cost of an existing institution. He attributed the present controversy to the flawed decision taken by certain bureaucrats. ‘‘Nobody here is opposed to smart meters, timely technological reforms or service optimisation. But the method of implementation is equally important. The KSEB should be protected and consumers should not be fleeced,’‘ he said, demanding a different approach to the roll-out.
NCCOEEE State convener S. Harilal, chairman M.P. Gopakumar, representatives of various employees’ organisations including the KSEB Officers’ Association, KSEB Workers Association, Electricity Employees’ Federation of India, All India Federation of Electricity Employees, KSEB Pensioners Association, Contract Workers’ Association, Kerala Electricity Officers’ Confederation, and Contract Workers Federation, were present.
Meeting on May 24
Electricity Minister K. Krishnankutty is expected to hold a meeting with MP and CITU State general secretary Elamaram Kareem, CPI State secretary Kanam Rajendran, and INTUC State president R. Chandrasekharan on May 24 to discuss the issues plaguing smart meter roll-out.
