Project engineers threaten to resign en masse
Tribune News Service

Shimla, April 25
Infuriated over the raw deal being handed out to project engineers in the state electricity board, members of the HPSEB Project Engineers Association have threatened to resign en masse in view of the indifferent attitude of the government towards the issues concerning the cadre.

A deputation of the association met Chief Minister PK Dhumal here today and submitted a memorandum to him in which all the issues were presented in detail.

MK Sharma, general secretary of the association, said project engineers were disillusioned and before taking any drastic measures they wanted to apprise the Chief Minister of the injustice being perpetrated on the cadre after unbundling of the board.

The latest irritant was the transfer of the post of Chief Engineer (Planning & Management), a cadre post of project engineers that was vacant since September last, to the power wing (Electrical). It had caused deep resentment among project engineers as earlier also the post of Chief Engineer (Arbitration) was snatched by posting an electrical engineer in place of a project engineer. It also affected the functioning of the board as arbitration cases were piling up.

At present, there are four hydroprojects under construction, namely Kashang, Sawara Kuddu, Sainj and Uhl and as the 80 to 90 per cent of the work pertained to project engineering (Civil), the strength of project engineers should be more than power engineers. However, senior-level posts of project engineers were being abolished and that of power engineers being increased. There were seven director-level posts from the power wing (Electrical) and only two from the project wing (Civil).

The post of the Chief Engineer (Investigation) was also lying vacant. In other reputed organisation like the Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam, the Departments of Planning and Monitoring were manned by project Engineers (Civil).

The association demanded that works pertaining to quality control and monitoring of hydroelectric projects allotted to the private sector should also be entrusted to the Chief Engineer (Investigation).

All civil works pertaining to the construction and maintenance of buildings, sub-stations, transmission towers and lines and existing power projects in the board and civil works in the Transmission Corporation be entrusted to project engineers. Posts of Managing Director in the HPPCL and the HPTCL be filled from the senior-most chief engineers of the project engineer cadre.