{"id":2897,"date":"2026-10-24T08:31:53","date_gmt":"2026-10-24T08:31:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2026\/10\/24\/haryana-minister-says-power-employees-strike-will-end-within\/"},"modified":"2026-10-24T08:31:53","modified_gmt":"2026-10-24T08:31:53","slug":"haryana-minister-says-power-employees-strike-will-end-within","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2026\/10\/24\/haryana-minister-says-power-employees-strike-will-end-within\/","title":{"rendered":"Haryana Minister Says Power Employees&#8217; Strike Will End Within Hours"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<!-- Quick Adsense WordPress Plugin: http:\/\/quickadsense.com\/ -->\n<div class=\"9fece8afa224fd09e54b043d0febfb58\" data-index=\"1\" style=\"float: none; margin:10px 0 10px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- NR ATF -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8898941184964366\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"4839033563\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p>Haryana\u2019s state minister for power, Anil Vij, told reporters on Friday that the government is close to ending the three\u2011day strike by electricity employees. He said a meeting scheduled for 3\u202fPM in Panchkula with union representatives would likely bring the protest to a halt within a few hours.<\/p>\n<h2>Background of the dispute<\/h2>\n<p>The strike began on Thursday, October\u202f22, and was planned to run through October\u202f24. Employees of the state\u2019s electricity department, including engineers, walked out to protest the entry of a private power distributor in the Gurugram and Nuh districts. The protest follows a decision by the Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission (HERC) to grant a 25\u2011year parallel distribution licence to Eleven Power Private Limited for those two districts.<\/p>\n<p>The commission\u2019s order, dated October\u202f19, permits Eleven Power to operate alongside the incumbent distributor, offering more than 8.3\u202flakh consumers \u2013 households, farmers, shops, offices and industrial units \u2013 a choice of electricity supplier as the new network is rolled out. The licence covers Gurugram City, Gurugram Sub\u2011urban, Manesar, Sohna and Nuh, with the first phase of network development slated to include Nuh.<\/p>\n<p>According to the licence terms, the new network is expected to become operational for consumer supply in the financial year 2027\u201128. The project is projected to involve a capital outlay of Rs\u202f4,717\u202fcrore between FY\u202f2026\u201127 and FY\u202f2030\u201131, under HERC\u2019s regulatory oversight. The proposed infrastructure will feature smart meters, digital billing, a distribution management system and other upgrades aimed at improving reliability and grievance redressal. Power procurement is planned to be 80\u202f% from renewable sources and 20\u202f% from thermal generation.<\/p>\n<p>Section\u202f14 of the Electricity Act, 2003, allows more than one distribution licencee to operate in the same area, marking this as the first instance of parallel electricity distribution in Haryana. Existing consumers are not required to take any immediate action; the incumbent distributor will continue supplying power while consumers may switch to the new provider as its network reaches them. The new licencee must submit a detailed implementation plan for the first phase and a protocol for consumer switching within 60\u202fdays.<\/p>\n<h2>Government response and upcoming meeting<\/h2>\n<p>Minister Vij described the strike as \u201cunwarranted\u201d and emphasized that the government is challenging the regulator\u2019s order that permits the private company to supply electricity. He noted that the state had opposed the private company\u2019s application before the regulator, but the decision went against the government\u2019s position. Vij reiterated his opposition to privatisation, arguing that the state has heavily invested in infrastructure and that the employees\u2019 services are at stake.<\/p>\n<p>In an interview with ANI, Vij said he has been urging employee leaders to abandon the strike and assist in preparing the legal case against the regulator\u2019s order. He added that the government is prepared to invoke Section\u202f108 of the relevant law to dismiss the order, a step he indicated could be taken immediately. Vij confirmed that he had discussed the matter with the Chief Minister and posted on Twitter that the Section\u202f108 provision would be invoked.<\/p>\n<p>Vij reported that he had spoken with the employee leaders on the same day and that the union representatives have agreed to meet in Panchkula at 3\u202fPM. He expressed confidence that the dialogue will resolve the dispute and that the strike will end \u201cin just a few hours.\u201d The minister stressed that dialogue, not industrial action, is the appropriate mechanism for settling the issue.<\/p>\n<h2>Details of the parallel distribution licence<\/h2>\n<p>The HERC order granting Eleven Power a parallel licence is notable for its scale and timeline. The licence authorises a second distribution entity to operate alongside the existing one, offering consumers a choice of supplier once the new network is functional. The network rollout is planned in phases over five years, with the first phase covering Nuh. The capital investment of Rs\u202f4,717\u202fcrore is spread across the fiscal years 2026\u201127 to 2030\u201131.<\/p>\n<p>The regulatory framework requires the new licencee to submit a comprehensive implementation plan for the first phase and a consumer\u2011switching protocol within 60\u202fdays of the licence grant. The plan must detail how smart meters, digital billing, and a distribution management system will be integrated. The power mix is set to be predominantly renewable, with 80\u202f% of electricity sourced from renewable energy and the remaining 20\u202f% from thermal plants.<\/p>\n<p>Under Section\u202f14 of the Electricity Act, 2003, multiple distributors can serve the same geographical area, a provision that the Haryana government is now testing. Existing consumers will continue to receive electricity from the incumbent provider without any immediate action required on their part. As the new network expands, consumers will be able to switch voluntarily to Eleven Power if they prefer the new service.<\/p>\n<p>The government\u2019s legal challenge to the regulator\u2019s decision hinges on the interpretation of the Electricity Act and the applicability of Section\u202f108, which allows the government to set aside an order it deems inappropriate. Vij indicated that the government is ready to invoke this provision, a step that could potentially halt the parallel licence pending a judicial review.<\/p>\n<p>While the strike has caused disruption across the state, the scheduled meeting in Panchkula is expected to provide a platform for both sides to discuss the way forward. Vij\u2019s statements suggest that the administration is prepared to consider alternative solutions if presented by the employee leaders.<\/p>\n<p>As the situation develops, stakeholders\u2014including the private distributor, the incumbent utility, consumer groups and the state\u2019s electricity regulator\u2014will be watching closely to see whether the proposed legal and administrative actions will reshape the electricity distribution landscape in Haryana.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"font-size: 0px; height: 0px; line-height: 0px; margin: 0; padding: 0; clear: both;\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Haryana Minister Anil Vij announced that talks with union leaders are set for 3\u202fPM in Panchkula and expressed confidence the three\u2011day power\u2011employee strike will conclude within hours.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2898,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[299],"tags":[3231,3232,3229,3230,3233],"class_list":["post-2897","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-electricity-distribution","tag-eleven-power","tag-haryana","tag-power-strike","tag-section-108","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2897","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2897"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2897\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2898"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2897"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2897"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2897"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}