BBMB chief’s selection stuck in ‘power’ politics
Jangveer Singh
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 15
The Union Power Ministry has been accused of delaying the appointment of chairman of the BBMB with the post remaining unfilled since the retirement of the last incumbent on July 31 this year.

Though the chairman of the BBMB will be finalised by the Appointment Committee of the Cabinet, which is chaired by the Prime Minister, the process has to be initiated by the Power Ministry.

This, sources said, should have been started earlier as the entire process would take eight to 10 months.

Even the shortlisting of candidates had led to problems and possible delays with one of the two persons short-listed claiming his rival had less than two years left in service.

Meanwhile, the delay in the appointment has left the Centre open for criticism from Punjab that has protested against handing over the charge of the post to Haryana representative M K Gupta, who is also the member, irrigation.

Chairman of the BBMB has traditionally been someone, who is not from either of the major partner states of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan. Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had earlier gone on record, saying that the member, irrigation, should be from Punjab instead of giving the post of member, power, to it. The Power Ministry, however, stuck to the tradition of giving the post of member, irrigation, to Haryana recently. Punjab is now doubly aggrieved that the post of member, irrigation, went to a Haryana appointee and that now the appointee has also been given the charge of the chairman’s post.

The All-India Power Engineers Federation said it would raise this issue during the Power Minister’s visit to Nangal to inaugurate the Hydro Training Institute tomorrow