Employees who are staging a dharna at Vidyut Soudha said they will intensify their agitation if the AP government does not relieve them by the month-end. (Representational image)

Hyderabad: Power sector employees who are natives of TS but working in APGenco and APTransco are not willing to go to AP.

At present, 167 such employees who are working in APGenco and APTransco offices located at Khairatabad have been told by the AP government to be prepared to shift to AP any time after June 2.

Employees who are staging a dharna at Vidyut Soudha said they will intensify their agitation if the AP government does not relieve them by the month-end. “One of our colleague has threatened to immolate himself if the AP government does not relieve the TS-native employees by May-end. We counselled him and said taking drastic steps will not resolve the issue,” said Amar Singh, who is at the forefront of the agitation.

Telangana Electricity Employees Association (TEEA) president N. Sivaji said that the purpose of achieving statehood for Telangana would be defeated if injustice is meted out to TS-native employees working in AP Power utilities. The AP government should not have any problem in relieving TS-native employees as the TS government is ready to absorb them in TS power utilities, he said.

Following a call given by the TEEA, hundreds of employees from various TS government sector employees associations from 10 districts, including TNGOs and Secretariat Employees Association, have been participating in the massive dharna at Vidyut Soudha from the last five days with the main demand that “only natives of Telangana should work in Telangana power sector.”

TEEA members said there are another 190 TS-native employees working in AP Power Distribution Companies in AP and they too should be relieved. “We have also requested the TS government to ensure that TS-native employees working in AP power sector are absorbed in TS-power sector even if the AP government does not relieve them. We are also taking legal opinion on this,” said a TEEA leader.