More than 250 officers of PSPCL today held a peaceful one day protest dharna and demonstration outside the office of the Chief Engineer/South Zone, PSPCL, Patiala, under the banner of the Progressive Alliance of Power Officers.
The call for the programme was confined to DS Circle, Patiala alone. That a single circle brought more than 250 officers of every cadre onto the road on a working day, in the middle of the paddy season, is itself the plainest measure of the resentment that has built up in the South Zone. Officers placed on record that they are discharging their duties under sustained mental harassment, undue administrative pressure, humiliation and an adverse working environment, which they attribute to the conduct and functioning of Er. Rattan Kumar Mittal, Chief Engineer/South Zone.
The Accounts Association, led by AO Sh. Srikant Sharma, extended its unconditional support to the agitation. The participation of officers from every wing, together with this support, establishes that the grievance is not that of one cadre or one section, but of the officer fraternity as a whole.
The stage proceedings were conducted by Er. Amandeep Singh Dhindsa, Organization Secretary. The gathering was addressed by Er. Jastej Singh Tiwana, President, Er. Gurmanpreet Singh Somal, General Secretary, Er. Sarbjeet Singh Dhiman, Vice President, Er. Abhiraj Singh Randhawa, Chief Spokesperson, Er. Harjinderpal Singh Chahal, Advisor, Er. Prikshit Bhanot, XEN Nabha, Er. Kanwardeep Singh, XEN Samana, Er. Gurmeet Singh Bagri, SDO, Er. Surinder Singh Dhot, SDO, and several other operational officers.
Today’s dharna is not a sudden step. It is the fourth stage of a graduated and entirely peaceful programme of action adopted unanimously by 45 officers in the general body meeting held on 12.08.2026, and implemented in measured phases since. The officers first imposed a symbolic boycott of direct communication with the CE/South Zone, all official communication being routed strictly through the proper channel via the Patiala Circle Office. They thereafter withdrew from all unofficial WhatsApp groups with effect from 17.08.2026, the date having been deliberately deferred so that the Independence Day arrangements were not disturbed in any manner. They then discontinued non-emergency clerical and administrative communication to the Circle and Zone offices after 5:00 PM, such communication being routed through the proper channel during working hours. At every stage the Alliance has acted with restraint and has kept the door to dialogue open, and at every stage that restraint has been met with silence. The record now stands that the officers have escalated slowly and lawfully, and the management has not moved at all.
The speakers set out the conditions in which field officers have been working. Through the recent employee strikes, through the peak summer demand, and through the paddy season now under way, these officers have held the supply, and they have done so while functioning with a severe shortage of manpower, at all hours, and under constant public and administrative pressure. Not one consumer in the South Zone has been made to suffer for the sake of this dispute. The Alliance asks the management to weigh that record against the treatment its officers say they are receiving in return.
The Alliance condemns, in unequivocal terms, the conduct and functioning of the Chief Engineer/South Zone as placed on record by the officers. The dignity, self respect and professional autonomy of an officer are not concessions granted by a superior. They are the minimum conditions in which an DS organisation can function at all, and they are not open to compromise.
The principal demand of the Alliance is single, specific and non negotiable, namely, the immediate transfer of Er. Rattan Kumar Mittal, Chief Engineer/South Zone, PSPCL, Patiala. Nothing short of this will restore a healthy, respectful and professional working environment in the South Zone. The Alliance is not seeking assurances, committees or time. It is seeking one administrative order that lies squarely within the competence of the management.
The general body has further resolved that in the event of failure on the part of the management to take prompt and appropriate action, the officers of DS Circle, Patiala shall proceed on Mass Leave next week, the exact date whereof shall be finalised and announced separately by the Alliance. The symbolic boycott of direct communication with the CE/South Zone shall continue, with all official communication being routed strictly through the proper channel via the Patiala Circle Office. The existing decisions regarding unofficial WhatsApp groups and regarding non-emergency clerical and administrative communication after 5:00 PM shall remain in force, and all such measures shall continue until the legitimate concerns of the officers are suitably addressed. In the absence of a satisfactory resolution, the agitation shall be intensified in a phased manner in accordance with the collective decisions of the officers, and the Alliance shall place the matter before the competent authorities at the highest level.
The Alliance clarifies categorically that this agitation is directed against the alleged conduct and functioning of one individual officer, and not against PSPCL as an organisation. The Alliance and its members remain fully committed to protecting the goodwill and reputation of PSPCL, which is their own institution and their own life’s work.
Essential electricity services and the public interest shall remain the foremost priority of the officers. Members shall continue to discharge their operational responsibilities diligently and shall extend all necessary support for maintaining reliable power supply and for prompt restoration of supply during breakdowns, including throughout the ongoing paddy season.
The Progressive Alliance urges the PSPCL management and the competent authorities to intervene immediately, take cognisance of the grievances placed on record by more than 250 officers, and resolve the matter without further delay. The Alliance places on record that the officers have exhausted every peaceful and internal avenue available to them, and that responsibility for any escalation from this point, and for any consequence flowing from it, will rest with those who had the authority to act today and chose not to.
