Nagpur: The Maharashtra Government finalised wage revision agreement for the employees up to Assistant Engineer level of three State run power companies amounting to Rs 1,570.47 crore, thus averting power crisis as workers had threatened to proceed on mass leave from July 9 onwards.
The revision was pending since April 2023, and the delay threatened to cast shadow on working of Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL), Maharashtra State Power Generation Company Limited (MSPGCL) and Maharashtra State Power Transmission Company Limited (MSPTCL) as discontent was brewing among the ground level staff.
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Saturday 05 Oct. 2024
Maharashtra Rajya Veej Kamgar, Abhiyante, Adhikari Sanyukta Kruti Samiti, was ready to showcase their strength. Several agitations were held throughout the State to press for early agreement as the same was hanging fire for the past one year. For the last three months the revision agreement was stuck owing to the Lok Sabha poll model code of conduct that delayed the final meeting with agitation union leaders and top officials of three companies and the Deputy Chief Minister who also holds the Energy portfolio.
Finally after prolonged discussions, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis held parleys with workers unions and reached an agreement. First meeting was held on March 7 wherein Government announced a 15 percent rise in basic pay and 100 percent rise in allowances The finalisation of revision would result in annual expenditure of Rs 1, 470 crore on the power companies, Fadnavis had claimed then.
However union leaders were unhappy with the rise and they conveyed the same to Fadnavis and sought a way out of imbroglio but due to model code of conduct, final decision was pending. In between, unions representing workers, engineers and officers who had joined hands under Maharashtra Rajya Veej Kamgar, Abhiyante, Adhikari Sanyukta Kruti Samiti, also served strike notices. Gate meetings were held on June 24 and 28 and latest on July 4. As per the notice, from July 9 onwards, the workers and officers were ready to proceed on indefinite strike till their demands were accepted.
A last minute meeting was held wherein Dy CM Fadnavis, Abha Shukla, Additional Chief Secretary (Energy), Lokesh Chandra, Chairman-cum-Managing Director, MSEDCL, Sanjay Kumar, CMD, MAHATRANSCO, Dr P Anbalgam, CMD, MahaGenco, along with Director, Human Resources, and Chief Industrial Officers, held a meeting and discussed the demands of the workers and officers.
Representatives of different unions presented their case and struck a hard bargain even as the Government side said additional financial burden would put the companies under pressure. Post discussion Dy CM Fadnavis announced that workers, engineers and officers would get 19 percent rise in their basic pay, 25 percent rise in all allowances, Rs 5,000 hike in wages of contractual workers having put in 3-years of service and Rs 1,000 additional pay to technicians working in field. As to other demands it was decided to conduct another meeting to resolve it.
