Power Engineers Demand Complete Withdrawal of Electricity Amendment Bill 2025
The All India Power Engineers Federation has launched a strong protest against the proposed Electricity Amendment Bill, 2025. The federation calls the legislation a dangerous step toward backdoor privatization of India's power sector. Engineers raised their objections during an online meeting organized by the Ministry of Power on Monday.
Major Concerns About Consumer Impact and State Authority
AIPEF representatives presented a detailed critique of the bill's potential consequences. They warned that the legislation would severely harm public sector distribution companies. The bill could also negatively impact poor and middle-class consumers across the country. Farmers would face particular difficulties under the proposed changes.
The federation expressed serious concerns about provisions that might weaken state governments' authority. All participating organizations unanimously demanded the complete withdrawal of the bill. They argued that the current draft fails to protect public interest.
Objection to Multiple Distribution Licenses
A primary objection focuses on allowing multiple distribution licenses in the same area. AIPEF strongly opposes granting distribution rights to private companies using existing public infrastructure. This infrastructure includes substations, lines, and transformers built over decades with public investment.
The federation predicts private licensees would selectively serve high-revenue commercial and industrial consumers. Government DISCOMs would then be left with domestic and agricultural consumers. This situation would increase financial losses for public utilities.
Parallel licensing would create additional complications for:
- Power purchase planning
- Energy accounting systems
- Billing processes
- Consumer grievance redressal mechanisms
Consumers would face confusion about service responsibility and complaint handling. Accountability would become unclear when multiple companies operate in the same area.
Lessons from Previous Privatization Efforts
AIPEF cited practical experiences from Delhi and Mumbai to support their arguments. Power privatization in Delhi has failed to provide genuine competition or consumer choice since 2002. Consumers still lack real alternatives between TATA Power and BSES after more than two decades.
Similarly, introducing multiple licenses in Mumbai led to disputes between private players. Prolonged court cases between TATA and Adani caused consumer hardship rather than benefits. These examples demonstrate potential problems with the proposed approach.
Tariff Increases and Regulatory Independence
The federation strongly opposes provisions eliminating cross-subsidies and subsidies within five years. This change would lead to sharp increases in electricity tariffs for domestic and agricultural consumers. Poor consumers might become unable to afford electricity, defeating the goal of universal access.
AIPEF also objects to clauses making it easier to remove State Electricity Regulatory Commission members. They term this an attack on regulatory independence. The proposed Electricity Council, chaired by the Union Power Minister, faces strong opposition too. The federation believes this council would centralize policy decisions and undermine states' constitutional authority.
Broader Opposition and Historical Context
AIPEF describes the bill as a clear move toward electricity distribution privatization. This shift would severely affect both consumers and employees. Farmers' organizations have already opposed the Electricity Amendment Bill during their agitations against farm laws.
The federation referenced analysis from the PRAYAS group, which raised serious concerns about network sharing provisions. The Government of India is attempting to pass the Electricity Amendment Bill for the fifth time between 2014 and 2025.
While the bill sets performance standards for consumer services, it fails to address manpower requirements needed to achieve those standards. This omission creates practical implementation challenges.
Call for Complete Withdrawal
Concluding the meeting, AIPEF Chairman Shailendra Dubey urged the Government of India to withdraw the Electricity Amendment Bill unconditionally. He emphasized that public utilities can effectively achieve power sector development. State-owned DISCOMs best ensure reliable and affordable power supply to all consumer categories.
Chief Patron Padamjit Singh and Secretary General Ratnakar Rao reiterated that multiple licenses would jeopardize consumer and employee interests. They asserted that the present bill must be withdrawn in the larger public interest. The federation remains committed to protecting public sector power utilities and consumer rights.
