Hyderabad: Legal hurdles for regularization of services of outsourced artisans working in the electricity organizations are no more as the petition challenging regularizing their services has been struck down by High Court on Tuesday. With this, the process to regularize 23,000 artisans working in TSGENCO, TSTRANSCO, SPDCL and NPDCL has been cleared.
Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao earlier instructed the Electricity department to regularize the services of artisans, who have been working for a long time on outsource basis in the department. Accordingly, the services of 23,000 artisans were regularized by the department and orders were issued to that effect. However, the decision was challenged in the High Court and a petition was filed against regularizing the artisans’ services. The High Court has already given interim orders on the petition. Hearing on the petition continued in the High Court.
Advocates arguing on behalf of the Electricity department explained the reasons and necessity to regularize the artisans’ services to the Court. They brought to the notice of the bench about the problems faced by artisans, who have been discharging their duties against all odds and about their skills and the need for regularization. They argued that it was not correct to oppose the human angle decision of the State government to regularize their services. These artisans, who have been working hard to supply quality power had to remain as outsourcing employees and thereby losing job security. The plea put forward by the Electricity department advocates has been agreed to by the Court and struck down the petition.
Chief Minister KCR expressed his happiness over the decision of High Court in striking down the petition filed against regularization of artisans’ services in the Electricity department. The CM said with human approach the government took the decision to regularize their services and it is happy that the High Court supported the decision. The CM also spoke to TSGENCO and TSTRANSCO CMD D Prabhakar Rao and instructed him to regularize the services of artisans, recognize them as regular employees, decide on the pay scales and implement PRC to them also.
CMD Prabhakar Rao expressed happiness over High Court judgment. He said the objective of the government was to regularize the services of artisans and with the court judgment, implementation of the decision was made easy. He said henceforth the artisans will be treated as regular employees. The CMD thanked all those who extended their cooperation in the process of regularization of artisans. He expressed satisfaction that the fruits of separate Telangana State are realized fully by artisans with regularization. (NSS)
