Farmers call off strike after written assurance of 8-hour power supply
The Paschim Gujarat Vij Company Limited (PGVCL) finally acceded to the demand for continuous power supply for full eight hours by the agitating Kutch Kisan Sangh (KKS) and gave an undertaking in writing late on Thursday. The KKS immediately withdrew its two-day long agitation outside the company's Kutch circle office.
The KKS leaders have, however, threatened to resume their agitation in a big way if the company fails to honour its promise.
''They (KKS) have withdrawn the agitation after we urged them to co-operate like the farmers in other parts of the state. The power cut was state wide due to less generation in the Western Grid. We are happy that they understood the situation and went away,'' said C M Joshi, Superintending Engineer of the Kutch circle of PGVCL late in the evening.
Earlier, the state farmers’ agitation against power shortage entered the second day on Thursday. Hundreds of farmers, mostly from the Patel community, staged a dharna and blocked the main entrance to the PGVCL office amid heavy police arrangements.
Mavjibhai Jatiya, president of the Patel community dominated KKS, told Newsline on Thursday: “We will not stop until we are assured in writing that we will be given continuous power supply for full 8 hours. We had to begin this agitation after getting power only for 5 to 6 hours. This has resulted in inadequate water supply because of which crops like cotton, groundnut, castor oil and millets sown two months ago, are drying up.”
Jatiya also denied PGVCL's claim that power supply in the agriculture sector has improved in the last twenty-four hours with the supply being for not less than 7.5 hours. “We are not getting the so-called improved power supply in every agriculture feeder. Also, the power was given with two to three breaks, which is not beneficial to the standing crops. It must be non-stop for full eight hours,” he said.
When told that the power shortage was a state-wide phenomenon due to the poor generation in Gujarat and the adjoining states, Jatiya said, “'This is not our concern. The state power company charges us Rs 850 for 8 hours and it is legally bound to supply power for as many hours,” he said.
Jatiya, however, said there was one more issue that was involved here. The soil in Kutch, unlike anywhere else in the state, is sandy and cannot hold water for long. Elsewhere, the soil is moist and 4 to 5 hours of power supply is sufficient. But in Kutch, the power supply has to be at least for 8 hours.
Jatiya said they have made representations to all, including the state energy minister, all MLAs in the district, top leaders of the BJP and the district collector. No leader from either the BJP or the Congress have visited them so far although they have conveyed to them that they are in touch with the government for power supply improvement in the district.
District Collector R R Varsani said a delegation of farmers met him in his chamber on Thursday; and on hearing their tale, he had asked the superintending engineer of the PGVCL, Kutch circle, to take up the issue of the Kutch soil in the state level meeting on special consideration of power supply here.
Sources, however, said that when the government cut industrial power supply for two hours and started supplying power for seven-and-half hours, there was no point in continuing the agitation. They also pointed out that power was not needed for rain-based crops, but for those dependent on irrigation.
Courtesy : www.expressindia.com
The Paschim Gujarat Vij Company Limited (PGVCL) finally acceded to the demand for continuous power supply for full eight hours by the agitating Kutch Kisan Sangh (KKS) and gave an undertaking in writing late on Thursday. The KKS immediately withdrew its two-day long agitation outside the company's Kutch circle office.
The KKS leaders have, however, threatened to resume their agitation in a big way if the company fails to honour its promise.
''They (KKS) have withdrawn the agitation after we urged them to co-operate like the farmers in other parts of the state. The power cut was state wide due to less generation in the Western Grid. We are happy that they understood the situation and went away,'' said C M Joshi, Superintending Engineer of the Kutch circle of PGVCL late in the evening.
Earlier, the state farmers’ agitation against power shortage entered the second day on Thursday. Hundreds of farmers, mostly from the Patel community, staged a dharna and blocked the main entrance to the PGVCL office amid heavy police arrangements.
Mavjibhai Jatiya, president of the Patel community dominated KKS, told Newsline on Thursday: “We will not stop until we are assured in writing that we will be given continuous power supply for full 8 hours. We had to begin this agitation after getting power only for 5 to 6 hours. This has resulted in inadequate water supply because of which crops like cotton, groundnut, castor oil and millets sown two months ago, are drying up.”
Jatiya also denied PGVCL's claim that power supply in the agriculture sector has improved in the last twenty-four hours with the supply being for not less than 7.5 hours. “We are not getting the so-called improved power supply in every agriculture feeder. Also, the power was given with two to three breaks, which is not beneficial to the standing crops. It must be non-stop for full eight hours,” he said.
When told that the power shortage was a state-wide phenomenon due to the poor generation in Gujarat and the adjoining states, Jatiya said, “'This is not our concern. The state power company charges us Rs 850 for 8 hours and it is legally bound to supply power for as many hours,” he said.
Jatiya, however, said there was one more issue that was involved here. The soil in Kutch, unlike anywhere else in the state, is sandy and cannot hold water for long. Elsewhere, the soil is moist and 4 to 5 hours of power supply is sufficient. But in Kutch, the power supply has to be at least for 8 hours.
Jatiya said they have made representations to all, including the state energy minister, all MLAs in the district, top leaders of the BJP and the district collector. No leader from either the BJP or the Congress have visited them so far although they have conveyed to them that they are in touch with the government for power supply improvement in the district.
District Collector R R Varsani said a delegation of farmers met him in his chamber on Thursday; and on hearing their tale, he had asked the superintending engineer of the PGVCL, Kutch circle, to take up the issue of the Kutch soil in the state level meeting on special consideration of power supply here.
Sources, however, said that when the government cut industrial power supply for two hours and started supplying power for seven-and-half hours, there was no point in continuing the agitation. They also pointed out that power was not needed for rain-based crops, but for those dependent on irrigation.
Courtesy : www.expressindia.com