: Hectic activity is on at the top government level for unbundling of the Punjab State Electricity Board, it is learnt, and the announcement could come any day.
Sources said the Power Department was ready with an unbundling plan and the government was also gearing up to handle any sort of opposition or unrest from sections of employees and engineers.

"They (government) have plans even to call engineers and staff from BHEL and NTPC in case the staff here refuse to run generating units in protest against the unbundling,"
revealed a senior PSEB official.

Employees' and engineers' forums have already announced action plans in case the state government announces unbundling.

It has been decided, it is learnt, not to seek extension for unbundling, which expires on September 15, from the Centre.

The Union government at the time of giving extension on the previous two occasions had kept a condition that the Punjab government would submit a roadmap for unbundling of the power board.

As per reports, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, Principal Secretary (Power) Suresh Kumar and PSEB chairman H.S. Brar were in Delhi last week to meet Union Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde and other officials.

Suresh Kumar, however, refused to confirm it.

"There are conjectures which cannot be confirmed at this stage, we have not izndulged in preliminary discussions on the matter," he commented. 4 COMPANIES COULD COME UP As per reports, the Punjab government has decided to unbundle PSEB into four companies -- for distribution, transmission and generation, along with a holding company. The government is looking for funds to give clean balance sheets before breaking the PSEB into smaller entities.
It needs whopping sums to the tune of Rs 23,000 crore to clear debts, loans and liabilities.