Hyderabad Electricity bill collectors protest demanding job regularisation
Hyderabad: Defying the harsh summer, around 600 bill collectors from the state electricity department staged a three-hour protest from noon here on Saturday, demanding fixed minimum wages as against the commission that they are paid presently.
They said that although many of them have been working for over 25 years, their remuneration is meagre, at ₹ 2.50 per bill in the rural areas and ₹ 2 in the urban areas.
They said that the state government’s welfare scheme ‘Gruha Jyothi,’ has hit them adversely as around 30 per cent of consumers are now eligible for free power of 200 units. These families will not be paying bills.
The protestors said that online payments have been another hurdle for them. They suggested that if the 1,31,48,000 electricity connections in the state are divided among them, each would be getting a monthly income of up to ₹ 43,666.
Devendhar, a fragile man holding a placard, told this correspondent, “I have two children. Earlier my monthly earnings were between ₹ 12, 000 and ₹ 15, 000. Now I take home around ₹ 6,000 despite slogging every day of the week, including Sundays. Payment of bills through apps and the Gruha Jyothi scheme have eaten into our earnings.”
Saidi Reddy, a protester who came all the way from Nalgonda, said, “Our wages depend on the bills. Even women bill collectors work hard, despite the weather conditions. Now our earnings have fallen down drastically.”
Meanwhile, E. Eshwar Rao, state president of Telangana State United Electricity Employees Union, said that after the Gruha jyothi scheme and introduction of online collections they have lost around 80 per cent of income. It is almost like partial unemployment, he said.
“Our demand is that the 600 bill collectors, most of whom are educated, including graduates and post graduates, should be accommodated as EROs (electricity revenue officers). They can also be absorbed in the revenue department. As per the labour laws, a minimum monthly wage of ₹ 15,000 must be paid to each ERO,” Rao said. He added, “We have given representations to the concerned ministers. We urge the government to take this into consideration and bail us out of our financial instability.”
