Thousands of homes are not getting electricity and water supply since Monday evening.
Chandigarh:
Parts of Chandigarh were without electricity and water for more than 36 hours following a three-day strike by electricity department employees. In one of India’s most planned cities, thousands of homes were without electricity and water supply since Monday evening and traffic lights were not working in many areas.
The administration has accused the striking employees of “acts of sabotage” in court.
Government hospitals have been forced to reschedule several operations.
Chandigarh Health Services Director Suman Singh told news agency PTI, “We have a backup plan like generators. But you cannot put 100 per cent load of a hospital on generators. Hence, we have to reschedule or postpone our planned surgeries. lay down.”
The power cut has also shut down online classes and coaching institutes in the union territory, located about four hours from Delhi.
Electricity workers are opposing the privatization of electricity department. Union Territory Advisor Dharampal held a meeting with the Electricity Employees Union and agreed to end the strike, but no solution has been found so far.
The protesting workers fear that privatization will change their working conditions and electricity rates will also increase.
On Tuesday evening, while implementing the Essential Services Maintenance Act, the Chandigarh Administration banned the strike by the Electricity Department for six months.
Chandigarh administration officials claimed that they had made arrangements to maintain power supply, but residents and traders of several areas of the city complained of power failure. Power cuts have also affected industrial production and manufacturing in some units of the city.
Intervening yesterday, the Punjab and Haryana High Court summoned the Chief Engineer of the Union Territory on Wednesday.
Justices Ajay Tiwari and Pankaj Jain directed the Chief Engineer to inform him about the measures taken to mitigate the power crisis in Chandigarh.
“It has been brought to our notice that power supply has been disrupted in large part of Chandigarh city. In these circumstances, we are constrained to take up the matter in judicial side and consequently requested Senior Standing Counsel, UT , Chandigarh to apprise us of the arrangements that the administration is making to ensure that the residents of the city do not face undue hardship,” the court order said.
Chandigarh Administration’s counsel Anil Mehta told the judges that “the strike is a power failure due to acts of sabotage by the employees”.
He said that Punjab and Haryana have been asked to give loans to their power workers to help them tide over the crisis.
The court took note of the lawyer’s statement that Punjab has “expressed its inability to send any person on deputation”.
“This court cannot be oblivious to the fact that the disruption in power supply is affecting not only ordinary residents but may affect institutions like hospitals where patients may be on ventilators and other life support systems. There are online examinations and classes that students are taking. In many cases, even virtual hearings in this court have been disrupted as lawyers are unable to appear due to the fact that there is no electricity in their offices. In such situations, irreparable damage may occur due to interruption of power supply,” the order said.
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