All posts tagged: pspcl

Ludhiana: PSPCL reshuffles staff ahead of paddy season, JE crisis persists

Ludhiana: PSPCL reshuffles staff ahead of paddy season, JE crisis persists

Published by Parlour News

With the paddy transplantation season set to gather pace and agricultural power demand expected to rise sharply in the coming weeks, Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) has undertaken a major reshuffle of field staff across its central zone to strengthen operations, even as a persistent shortage of junior engineers (JEs) continues to pose challenges for maintenance and fault rectification. Sub-divisions, including parts of the Adda Dakha division, are functioning with only one JE. (HT Photo) According to a recent office order issued by the chief engineer, central zone, Ludhiana, dozens of employees, including additional assistant engineers, JEs, line staff and clerical employees, have been transferred and posted against vacant positions across divisions and sub-divisions in Ludhiana, Khanna, Jagraon, Ahmedgarh, Amloh, Doraha and Fatehgarh Sahib. The exercise has been undertaken ahead of the paddy season, when uninterrupted electricity supply to agricultural consumers becomes a priority and field staff are required round the clock to attend feeder faults, power breakdowns and maintenance-related issues. However, employees said the reshuffle does little to address the larger manpower crisis …

Ludhiana: PSPCL’s maintenance work hit as summer load rises

Ludhiana: PSPCL’s maintenance work hit as summer load rises

Published by Parlour News

The outage reduction plan (ORP) of Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL), launched to reduce recurring electricity interruptions, is witnessing a slowdown in execution as soaring temperatures and power demand have left officials with limited shutdown windows for maintenance work. Officials added that once fully implemented, the project is expected to significantly improve supply stability and reduce repeated local faults . (HT File) The large-scale infrastructure project, which includes feeder deloading, installation of new transformers, and augmentation of overloaded distribution transformers (DTs), was launched in July 2025 with a target to substantially complete all the work by March 2027. Officials said the project aims to improve reliability and minimise unscheduled outages across the city, especially during peak summer months. However, with the city witnessing heavy electricity consumption due to the ongoing heatwave, PSPCL teams are struggling to get adequate shutdown time required for major field operations. Officials said technical maintenance and augmentation works generally require nearly eight-hour shutdowns, but field teams are currently permitted only around four-hour cuts to avoid prolonged disruptions to consumers during …

Ludhiana: Strike ends as PSPCL comes up with direct contractual engagement policy

Ludhiana: Strike ends as PSPCL comes up with direct contractual engagement policy

Published by Parlour News

The Complaint Handling Bike (CHB) and Complaint Handling Wagon (CHW) workers, who had been protesting for more than a week against the outsourced system of recruitment, ended their strike on Sunday after the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) announced that it would directly engage eligible outsourced workers on a contractual basis after technical screening and experience verification. Outsourced workers’ protest that went on for over a week affected routine operations. (HT File) More than 1,000 outsourced workers in Ludhiana were participating in the strike, their union stated. The protesting workers, most of whom handle complaint attendance, local fault restoration, transformer breakdowns, and emergency field operations, had been demanding the removal of the contractor-based hiring system. The announcement, which was made by the PSPCL’s Patiala office on Sunday, mentioned in its proposed mechanism that outsourced workers possessing technical qualifications and having three or more years of experience would be eligible for immediate direct contractual engagement with PSPCL. Workers having technical qualifications but less than three years of experience would become eligible after completing the required …

Transformer thefts cripples supply in Ludhiana circles

Transformer thefts cripples supply in Ludhiana circles

Published by Parlour News

A surge in transformer thefts across Punjab State Power Corporation Limited’s (PSPCL) Ludhiana circles has significantly disrupted power supply, with officials attributing the rise to an organised scrap network targeting critical infrastructure components. A PSPCL employee repairs a transformer in Ludhiana on Saturday. (HT Photo) The incidents, which have escalated over recent months, are no longer being treated as isolated acts of pilferage. Senior PSPCL functionaries say the pattern points to a coordinated racket extracting copper windings, coils and other high-value fittings from transformers, rendering them unserviceable and triggering sudden outages across residential, rural and industrial areas. According to internal PSPCL data, 1,885 transformers had been rendered defunct due to theft till December 2025, compared with 1,176 during the corresponding period last year. The financial loss has climbed to ₹814.72 lakh. The highest number of cases has been reported from suburban circles (1,033), followed by Khanna circle (800). Despite FIRs being registered in every instance by the concerned subdivision officers (SDOs), police investigations have yielded no substantive breakthrough so far, compounding the utility’s concerns. PSPCL …

Ludhiana: PSPCL JE booked for cheating as audit flags ₹2-crore discrepancy

Ludhiana: PSPCL JE booked for cheating as audit flags ₹2-crore discrepancy

Published by Parlour News

A junior engineer (JE) of the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) has been booked for allegedly failing to account for departmental material worth ₹2.07 crore drawn from stores for nearly three years, after an internal audit in the Alamgir-Lalton belt exposed major pending stock records. The irregularity came to light during an audit and stock reconciliation exercise (HT File) The accused, Tanuj Bhardwaj, was posted as a JE in the Sarinh (Alamgir) subdivision under PSPCL and had earlier handled work in the Lalton area. The FIR was registered at Dehlon police station under Sections 409 (criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating) of the IPC, based on a complaint filed by Kamaljeet Singh, assistant executive engineer (AEE), PSPCL subdivision, Sarinh. According to the complaint, Bhardwaj allegedly withdrew transformers, LT line wires and other power infrastructure material from the department store between 2021–22 and 2024–25, but failed to submit the mandatory year-end material utilisation and account surrender reports. These reports are required from every JE after measurement and completion of field work to ensure proper …

Punjab govt power connections to have prepaid smart meters; state’s borrowing limit to go up | Chandigarh News

Punjab govt power connections to have prepaid smart meters; state’s borrowing limit to go up | Chandigarh News

Published by Parlour News

In a significant move linked to the Central government–mandated power sector reforms, the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) has issued instructions to implement prepaid smart metering for government electricity connections from February 15. The instructions were issued through a letter dated January 28 addressed to chief engineers of various districts and are aimed at meeting reform conditions that would allow Punjab to avail of additional borrowing space to the extent of 0.5 per cent of the state’s gross state domestic product (GSDP). In 2021-22, the Centre introduced a power sector reform-linked borrowing incentive in the form of additional borrowing space up to 0.5 per cent of GSDP. According to the letter, the move is in compliance with the circular dated February 7, 2023, and its subsequent amendment of February 14, 2023. In the February 7 circular, the scheme of the installation of prepaid smart meters was introduced for government departments, and on February 14, an amendment was made to the effect that the scheme would not be applicable to government hospitals, street lights, and …

Edu dept on PSPCL defaulters’ list: Ludhiana govt schools rack up over ₹2cr in unpaid electricity bills

Edu dept on PSPCL defaulters’ list: Ludhiana govt schools rack up over ₹2cr in unpaid electricity bills

Published by Parlour News

₹2cr in unpaid electricity bills” data-collapse-article=”false” > Published on: Nov 23, 2025 06:54 am IST School officials said the bills have piled up due to delayed and insufficient fund release by the dept AI Quick Read Government schools in the district have accumulated a staggering ₹2.37 crore in unpaid electricity bills, placing the school education department on the defaulters’ list of the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL), officials aware of the matter said. According to PSPCL data, the unpaid bills are spread across multiple zones in the district. (HT File) Despite repeated reminders and notices from the PSPCL, the dues continue to mount. According to PSPCL data, the unpaid bills are spread across multiple zones in the district: ₹33.15 lakh from the East Circle, ₹52.54 lakh from the West Circle, ₹108.70 lakh from the Suburban Circle, and ₹43.19 lakh from the Khanna Circle. School officials said the bills have piled up due to delayed and insufficient fund release by the department. Sukhdhir Singh Sekhon, head teacher of Government Primary School, Moti Nagar, said, “The …

PSPCL functioning with only 2 full-time directors; key posts remain vacant amid ongoing employee unrest | Chandigarh News

PSPCL functioning with only 2 full-time directors; key posts remain vacant amid ongoing employee unrest | Chandigarh News

Published by Parlour News

Even as protests by the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) employees intensified following the Corporation’s decision to terminate the services of Director (Generation) Harjeet Singh and suspend the chief engineer of the Ropar and Goindwal Sahib thermal plants, a deeper structural issue has come into focus: PSPCL is currently operating with only two full-time directors from its cadre, raising concerns over decision-making and governance in the power sector. The Punjab government had fired Director (Generation) Harjit Singh and suspended the chief engineer over ‘discrepancies’ in fuel cost management at state-run thermal power plants. Notably, the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) was unbundled into PSPCL and the Punjab State Transmission Corporation Limited (PSTCL) on April 16, 2010. Over the years, director-level posts such as Administration, Commercial, Distribution, Generation, Finance, Human Resources (HR) and Technical were created across the two corporations. Of these, the post of Director (Technical) is in PSTCL, where the position is currently filled. However, on the PSPCL side, only Director (Finance) S K Beri and Director (Commercial) Inderpal Singh remain as the …

Ludhiana: PSPCL snapped connections of 117 dyeing units in past 2 months

Ludhiana: PSPCL snapped connections of 117 dyeing units in past 2 months

Published by Parlour News

Oct 27, 2024 10:39 PM IST According to the officials, The action was taken for alleged violations of pollution norms by the units dumping untreated wastewater into Ludhiana’s Buddha Nullah The Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) has snapped the electricity connections of 117 dyeing units in the past two months, officials aware of the matter said. Buddha Nullah pollution has been a persistent issue for the locals and authorities. (Manish/HT) They added the action was taken for alleged violations of pollution norms by the units dumping untreated wastewater into the Buddha Nullah. According to the officials, the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) prepared a list of dyeing units violating the norms and sent it to the PSPCL. The list includes units allegedly throwing ‘poisonous’ waste or cow dung and urine into the already polluted water body. The action taken in the last two months includes temporary and indefinite suspensions. The PPCB and the district administration have been regularly issuing warnings to the owners of the dyeing units, asking them to use the treatment plants. …