SHILLONG, Feb 28 - Employees of the North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Ltd (NEEPCO) are hoping that everything will remain the same once the Central Government sells its 100 per cent stake in the PSU to the National Thermal Power Corporation Ltd (NTPC).
Earlier, there was confusion and opposition from the employees after the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) last year approved of a proposal of the Finance Ministry for divestment of the Central Government�s stake in the NEEPCO.
The 2,300 regular employees fear that the NEEPCO might be privatised, but once it was made clear that the Centre�s stake would be sold to the NTPC, the employees are somewhat relieved.
�The situation was different earlier, but now it is only change of ownership from one Central Government entity to another,� a senior NEEPCO official and leader of one of the corporation�s labour unions told The Assam Tribune today.
He said that the Central Government has made it clear in its heads of account in the last Budget that a sum of Rs 1.5 lakh crore would be raised from disinvestment and the NEEPCO was one of the companies from which the target would be achieved.
�As of now, it is not clear when the stakes will be sold to the NTPC, but the target is the current fiscal and we are all waiting,� the official said.
Before the stakes are sold, several decisions will have to be taken, which will mean holding parleys with different ministries and following the norms laid down by the Companies Act. Though the employees are a bit relieved, they are still not fully sure and will hold a meeting soon.
�We will hold a meeting to decide what to do next, but first we have to know what are the terms and conditions for the change of ownership,� the official added.
The NEEPCO, with its corporate headquarters here, was established in 1976 under the North Eastern Council. Over 90 per cent of its 2,300 employees are from this region. The objective of the NEEPCO is to tap the vast hydropower potential of the region, thereby uplifting the socio-economic condition of the people of the region.
At present, the NEEPCO has seven hydro, three thermal and one solar power projects spread across the region. The combined installed capacity of these projects is close to 1,457 MW. The NEEPCO caters to 40 per cent of the region�s power requirements.
�We are a profit-making company and we intend to stay that way in the near future. We are all eagerly waiting for the Centre�s next step,� the official added.
