Karnataka to fill 35,000 vacancies in power sector, regularise 532 civic workers
Bengaluru, June 18 (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday announced that his government will begin phased recruitment to fill 35,000 vacant posts in the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Ltd (KPTCL) and declared the regularisation of services of 532 civic workers in the department.
Speaking at the Platinum Jubilee celebrations of the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Employees’ Association, the CM said the state government is committed to fulfilling its promises to the workforce.
“Ours is a government that walks the talk. We will examine your demands and take appropriate action,” he said.
Addressing concerns over pensions, the Chief Minister said the National Pension Scheme (NPS) was implemented by the central government.
“But we have already promised to implement the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) in our election manifesto. We will hold discussions and take necessary steps in that direction.”
Siddaramaiah lauded the power corporation employees for their service and underscored Karnataka’s legacy in the electricity sector. “Karnataka was the first in Asia to produce electricity in 1902, launched its first supply company in Bengaluru in 1905, and supplied power to the Mysore Palace by 1908,” he said.
He noted that the state now generates 34,000 megawatts, with plans to scale it to 60,000 megawatts, a move aimed at ensuring at least seven hours of daytime power supply to farmers.
“The electricity sector is essential. You have been working with dedication. The government is ready to meet your demands. We are with you — and we ask you to stand with us too,” he told the employees.
Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, who also spoke at the event, asserted that the Congress government will not permit the privatisation of Electricity Supply Companies (ESCOMs) as long as it remains in power.
“As long as Siddaramaiah and I are in power, we won’t allow privatisation of ESCOMs in Karnataka. There were attempts to allow entry of private players, but I did not allow it,” Shivakumar said.
He claimed that there was significant pressure from the Centre during his earlier tenure as the Energy Minister, especially after the BJP government privatised ESCOMs in Mumbai, Delhi, and other cities. However, he said he resisted the pressure and stood by the efficiency of the corporation’s workforce.
“When I took over, the Transmission and Distribution (T&D) loss stood at 19–20 per cent. We brought it down to 10 per cent, which is now a benchmark in the country,” Shivakumar said, noting that most states continue to report losses of 17–18 per cent.
He added that during his tenure, the state’s generation capacity doubled from 11,000 MW to 23,000 MW, and that 24,000 employees were recruited through a transparent process, ensuring job creation without corruption.
Highlighting innovations like the Pavagada Solar Park, Shivakumar said the government adopted a land-leasing model rather than acquisition, which allowed farmers to retain ownership and earn annual rental income — a model later adopted by the Union government.
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Unemployed 'youngsters like cockroaches' become media, activists; attack system: CJI
New Delhi (PTI): Likening some unemployed youngsters to cockroaches, Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant on Friday said they go on to "become" media, social media and RTI activists and start attacking the system.
The comments came while a bench of CJI Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi was pulling up a lawyer for "pursuing" a senior advocate designation. It said there were already "parasites" in society who attack the system and asked the petitioner whether he wanted to join hands with them.
"The entire world may be eligible to become senior (advocate), but at least you are not entitled," the bench told the petitioner lawyer.
A visibly anguished CJI observed that if the Delhi High Court would confer senior advocate designation upon the petitioner, the apex court would set that aside seeing his professional conduct.
The CJI also referred to the kind of language used by the petitioner on Facebook.
"There are already parasites of society who attack the system and you want to join hands with them?" he said.
"There are youngsters like cockroaches, who don't get any employment or have any place in profession. Some of them become media, some of them become social media, RTI activists and other activists and they start attacking everyone," he said.
The bench also asked the petitioner whether he did not have any other litigation.
"Is this the conduct of a person who seeks to be designated as a senior advocate?" the bench asked.
It said senior advocate designation is something that is conferred on a person and is not to be pursued.
"You are pursuing it. Does it look proper?" the top court said, asking whether a senior advocate designation was a status symbol to be kept ornamentally.
It also observed that it wanted to ask the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to verify the degrees of many of those who were wearing black robes as there were serious doubts over the genuineness of their degrees.
It said the Bar Council of India would never do anything on this issue as they "need their votes".
The petitioner apologised to the bench and sought permission to withdraw the petition. The bench allowed the withdrawal of the petition.
