CHANDIGARH: All India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF) has written to the heads of BJP, Congress and major political partiessuggestions for the improvement of power sector for inclusion in their election manifesto’s.

V K Gupta Spokesperson AIPEF said that the Federation in letters to Amit Shah, Rahul Gandhi and other heads of political parties highlights the problems being faced by the power sector and suggestions to improve its working.

The entry of private sector in both power sector and coal mining, opened the floodgates to indiscriminate privatization leading to the present problem of stranded assets in both the sectors and its deleterious impact on the country’s financial institutions.

V K Gupta said that Federation has suggested that high-powered committee with representatives’ of all stakeholders including common consumers and power engineers/employees be set up to review the impact of the Electricity Act 2003 and attempt to further amend it. The committee should also examine the need to restore some features of the tried and tested Electricity (Supply) Act 1948 after evaluating the consequences of unbundling creating multiple organizations resulting in needless and avoidable confusion, increase in costs and litigation with the aim to integrate all power utilities in state.

Another area of concern is the removal or diluting regulatory functions of the Central Electricity Authority (CEA). A large number of thermal plants that have became stressed assets, thereby jeopardizing the financial system could have been avoided has there been a techno-economic approval of CEA and its paramount role should be restored.

The thrust and tempo of new and renewable energy should continue but with condition that solar energy does not result in grid instability and wasteful investment in transmission. The concern of safety is paramount in nuclear energy and this need to be addressed. The import content in solar energy should be reduced.

The lack of purchasing capacity is restraining universal electrification. Cost of electricity needs to be rationalized through subsidies on the one hand and reducing the cost of electricity on the other. Cost reduction would be brought through standardization, higher productivity, energy efficiency and reducing the intermediary organizations between production and consumption.

. Regular recruitment for regular posts is a must and time has come to do away with contractual or outsourcing in power sector by regularizing all such workers in power sector. All power sector employees need to be covered in old pension scheme for their secure future.