The MeECL Engineers’ Association announced to stage a protest on Tuesday across Meghalaya against the suspension of a resident engineer by the MeECL.
The MeECL suspended resident engineer LM Pohshna of the Myntdu-Leshka Hydro Electric Project (MLHEP) stage-I power station at Suchen in West Jaiñtia Hills district.
Pohshna was suspended by the Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (Corporate Affairs) allegedly due to failure of two general transformers.
Terming the suspension of the engineer as “unjust”, the MeECL Engineers’ Association has decided to stage a protest against the order in the premises of the offices, power stations and substations across the state on Tuesday.
The suspension of Pohshna on August 3 has been attributed to the failure of two general transformers on July 21 and 26 at Suchen.
It was stated that the generation of power from the MLHEP was compromised due to the failure of generation from one unit brought about by the failure of the general transformer on July 21 as reported by the director (generation).
Besides, a spare transformer was placed at the disposal of the project for the purpose which was then installed on July 25 also failed on July 26 forcing the shutdown of the affected unit.
The suspension order said the failure of the two general transformers points to negligence in the discharge of duty on the part of the technical officers concerned.
During the suspension period, the engineer shall be paid subsistence allowance as admissible under the rules.
However, the MeECL Engineers’ Association termed the suspension as “unjust and arbitrary”.
The Association said the failure of the transformer was purely an unforeseen incident which could be attributed to many external factors such as lightning surges, internal winding failures, real-time loading which can be determined after proper investigations.
The Association also said the failure of the transformer on July 26 had a past history of failures.
It said the transformer has been repaired several times by the original transformer manufacturer at the site during which the transformer has not been subjected to impulse and high voltage test as per prevailing standards.
The Association said as a mark of first phase protest against the suspension order undermining the rule of law, it has resolved to wear black badges, carry placards, and stick banners on Tuesday in the offices, power stations, and substations premises across the state.
“The MeECL Engineers’ Association would not be held responsible if any breakdown occurs during this period of protest or future course of action,” the Association warned.