Warring condemns police brutality against *MGNREGA employees* in Khanna Says, Mann has turned Punjab into police state Chandigarh 15 July ( Ranjeet Singh Dhaliwal ) : Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring today condemned the brutal police barbarity against the MGNREGA employees in Khanna who were demanding the payment of their pending wages. “Bhagwant Mann has turned Punjab into a police state”, he remarked, while noting that instead of listening to the problems and demands of the needy, he has been using brute police force against them. Moreover, he pointed out, the workers were not only staging a peaceful sit-in dharna, but were also chanting ‘Satnam Wahe Guru’ and still the police resorted to such brutality. The PCC president asked what wrong had the MGNREGA employees done that they were showered with water cannons, teargas shells and lathis by the police. “Is this how a common man’s government deals with its people?” he asked, while demanding the suspension of the ...
Preparations in full swing for the massive sit-in and protest at the Sector 17 Electricity Office on July 22, 2026.
Preparations in full swing for the massive sit-in and protest at the Sector 17 Electricity Office on July 22, 2026.
Chandigarh 15 July ( Ranjeet Singh Dhaliwal ) : The UT Powermen Union, Chandigarh, held a 'gate meeting' today at the Sector 20 Electricity Office to prepare for the sit-in protest scheduled for July 22, 2026, in front of the Sector 17 Electricity Office. This protest is being organized to oppose the negative attitude adopted by the Chandigarh Administration and CPDL management regarding the demands of electricity employees. Addressing the meeting, Union President Amrik Singh, Senior Vice Presidents Sukhvinder Singh Sidhu and Gurmeet Singh, General Secretary Gopal Dutt Joshi, Joint Secretary Virendra Singh, and Secretary Surjit Singh condemned the administration's and CPDL management's negative stance.
They highlighted that, due to this attitude, several demands remain unfulfilled: adjusting employees transferred from the Administration to CPDL into other departments; implementing financial circulars issued by the Administration; granting promotion scales and processing promotions pending since January for dozens of employees; regularizing outsourced employees within the company; providing pensions and terminal benefits to retired employees; paying pensions, outstanding dues, and providing employment to the dependents of deceased employees; ensuring an 8-hour workday for part-time employees; ensuring the additional 2% hike in DC rates; and making payments for uniforms, children's allowances, increment arrears, and medical bills. Furthermore, they demanded the provision of allowances—such as risk duty, shift duty, electricity allowance, and ledger keeper allowance—based on the nature of the work, as well as the provision of basic office amenities like seating, drinking water, safety equipment, and raincoats.
The speakers alleged that while the Government of India's decision was solely to privatize the distribution network, officials from the Chandigarh Administration's Engineering Department sold off transmission assets alongside distribution assets; this caused immense harm to the employees, who were pushed into the private company, thereby stripping them of their government status and service conditions and turning them into employees of a private firm. Union office-bearers alleged that the CPDL management is intent on exploiting the employees rather than protecting their interests or resolving their grievances. The speakers further alleged that certain departmental officials, acting on behalf of the management, are harassing employees over the issue of APARs (Annual Performance Assessment Reports), threatening to withhold promotions and salaries—actions that will not be tolerated under any circumstances. They questioned why employees are being forcibly compelled to fill out APARs when their employment status remains undecided and the matter is sub judice. The union declared that it would not tolerate such high-handedness. The speakers appealed to all employees to participate in large numbers in a massive protest demonstration scheduled for July 22, 2026.
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