Pune: Baramati MSEDCL Employee Killed, Unions Demand Better Safety Measures At Workplace 

Baramati, Maharashtra: Following the tragic murder of a female Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) employee in Baramati by an irate consumer, workers’ unions are demanding immediate action to enhance the safety of their members. In response to the incident, plans are in place to equip the Morgaon office with CCTV cameras and security measures.

The Joint Action Committee of Maharashtra State Electricity Employees, Officers, Engineers, and Unions has called on the discom’s administration to quickly devise a thorough plan to prevent similar occurrences in the future. The committee has requested 24-hour security guards at all MSEDCL substations and branch offices.

“The head office will consider the demands of the employee unions in the state and announce a decision soon,” said Ankush Nale, Regional Director of Pune Regional Division.

The recent incident highlights significant safety concerns, especially for the company’s 10,000 female employees. MSEDCL, which employs 55,000 workers, began assigning women to linewoman positions in 2013, such as Rinku Bansode-Thite who was fatally attacked while on duty.

An anonymous linewoman voiced her concerns, stating, “While the government is promoting gender equality by reserving 33 percent of job positions for women, their security is often overlooked. This is particularly evident in Baramati, where despite two women contesting the Lok Sabha seat, a female staff member was killed on duty.”

Krishna Bhoyer, General Secretary of Maharashtra State Electricity Workers Federation, criticized the state government for neglecting the security needs of MSEDCL employees. “Our employees are under immense stress from the administration to recover unpaid bills totalling ₹73,000 crore, leading to conflicts with consumers,” Bhoyer explained. He highlighted that the victim’s husband, not MSEDCL, filed the first information report (FIR), and it was only on the second day that the discom’s director met with the victim’s family.

In the past five months, there have been 13 violent incidents against MSEDCL employees in western Maharashtra, including in Pune, resulting in criminal charges against 19 individuals.

These violent interactions often stem from disputes over bill payments, as MSEDCL faces a financial crisis with increasing overdue electricity bills. Engineers and staff urge timely payment to avoid disconnections, but confrontations sometimes escalate to assaults when consumers react to enforcement measures.