Vacant posts in Punjab’s power sector lead to worries about supply, efficiency

The Punjab government has yet again failed to fill up vacant posts for four directors of Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) and Punjab State Transmission Corporation Limited (PSTCL), besides failing to appoint a member each in the post of Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) and in the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB).

Before the start of the paddy season on June 2 this year, the director distribution and the director commercial in PSPCL as well as the director technical in PSTCL were granted 4-month extensions. The state government, however, failed to complete the selection process in four months. In October this year, the directors were again given two-months extensions. V K Gupta, spokesperson of All India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF) has written to the Union power minister seeking immediate recruitments for the two posts, which he claimed were vital for Punjab and Haryana.

Gupta said that the chairman of PSPCL was about to complete his term in December and the selection process to replace him had not yet been started. On the other hand, advertisements for filling the post of member in PSERC had been issued in May 2022, but the state failed to fill the post in the five months that followed. The PSEB Engineers Association has written to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann claiming that the uncertainty in the state power sector was starting to impact the efficiency of PSPCL and PSTCL.

The post of member irrigation BBMB is lying vacant since September 9, 2020, and the post of member Power BBMB is lying vacant since September 26 this year.