| PDD engineers, employees stage mass protest leave, demand swift promotions, filling of vacancies | | | Early Times Report
JAMMU, Sept 9: In a show of unity and frustration over delayed promotions and unfilled vacancies, hundreds of engineers, from Junior Engineers to Chief Engineers, of the Power Development Department (PDD) observed a 24-hour mass protest leave starting at midnight on September 8th. This protest, organized by the Jammu and Kashmir Electrical Engineering Graduates Association (JKEEGA), drew support from various major PDD employee organizations.
The protest aimed to highlight the inordinate delay in filling vacant positions across all levels of the Power Development Department, affecting the morale of officers and hindering public service delivery and grievance redressal.
The government had made commitments nearly two years ago, in an agreement dated December 21, 2021, signed between government representatives and Power employee representatives after a 4-day confrontation in 2021. However, these commitments remain unfulfilled.
The engineering cadre faces more than 750 vacancies, while technical/clerical cadres have over 4000 vacant posts. This includes 01 post of Managing Director, 03 posts of Executive Director, 05 Chief Engineers, 14 Superintending Engineers, 61 Executive Engineers, 132 Assistant Executive Engineers, 164 Assistant Engineers, and around 350 Junior Engineers.
Promotion files for all cadres have been stuck for months and have been shuffled between the Chief Secretary's office and the administrative department. Officers nearing the end of their careers, some of whom have already retired, are affected, along with officers down the hierarchy.
Despite the State Administrative Council's (SAC) decision dated October 23, 2019, which sought completion of regular promotions within two months, no engineer working in different Power Corporations has received a regular promotion.
Due to vacancies in key positions, multiple charges have been assigned, affecting service delivery to end consumers. Chief Engineers are working in the substantive grades of Assistant Engineers and Superintending Engineers, and officers below them are working in the substantive grades of Junior Engineers.
No Positive Outcome: Despite repeated attempts by JKEEGA to address these issues with the Chief Secretary of J&K, who is also the Advisor to the LG, promotion files have remained in his e-office account for over 6 months without a resolution.
Future Protests: The protesting engineers and employees, under the banner of JKEEGA, have announced their intention to observe a 48-hour mass protest leave on September 25, 2023, if their demands are not addressed.
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