HYDERABAD: The All India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF) issued a strong call to power engineers nationwide to unite against moves to privatise India’s electricity sector. Chairman Shailendra Dubey and secretary‑general P. Ratnakar Rao urged engineers to remain vigilant and oppose, through democratic and constitutional means, attempts to weaken the public character of the country’s power infrastructure.
On its 54th foundation day, the federation stressed that India needs genuine, consumer‑centric reforms tailored to local realities, not privatisation of public assets under the guise of reform. AIPEF strongly criticised the Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2025, and policies promoting privatisation of public‑sector DISCOMs, large‑scale private participation in transmission through Tariff Based Competitive Bidding (TBCB), monetisation of power assets, and indiscriminate privatisation of generation, especially in renewables.
AIPEF leaders highlighted that India’s transmission and distribution networks have been built over decades through public investment, government support and consumer contributions, making them national assets that cannot be treated as commercial platforms for private profit. They warned that allowing private players to cherry‑pick profitable industrial and commercial consumers would leave public DISCOMs burdened with financially challenging segments like agriculture, rural households and subsidised categories, gradually eroding their viability.
The federation also expressed concern over private control of renewable energy generation, calling it a strategic pillar of future energy security that must remain under strong public‑sector capabilities. Instead of transferring assets, AIPEF advocated strengthening state and central utilities with adequate manpower, modern technology and financial resources.
Reiterating its commitment to defend public power, consumer interests and employee welfare, AIPEF pledged to mobilise engineers, consumers and farmers against reforms that undermine public utilities or transfer national electricity assets to private hands.