Electricity supply to farms capped at 10 hours in MP:Power company warns employees of salary cuts for violations; Congress terms order as ‘BJP’s hypocrisy’

Farmers in Madhya Pradesh are already struggling due to unseasonal rain. Now, a new order from the state’s electricity department has added to their problems. The power company has instructed that electricity supply to agricultural feeders must not exceed 10 hours a day. If this limit is crossed, one day’s salary of the concerned operator will be deducted. Order Issued by Power Company The directive was issued by A.K. Jain, Chief General Manager of the Madhya Kshetra Vidyut Vitaran Company. It applies to all areas under the company’s central region. Copies of the order have been sent to Chief General Managers of Bhopal and Gwalior, and to General Managers in districts including Sehore, Rajgarh, Narmadapuram, Raisen, Harda, Vidisha, Ashoknagar, Guna, Bhind, Morena, Sheopur, Shivpuri, and Datia. Strict penalty rules for officials The order clearly states that if electricity is supplied for more than 10 hours on any agricultural feeder, it will be treated as a violation. In such cases, one day’s salary of the concerned operator will be deducted. If the control room continues supplying power for over 10 hours for two consecutive days, one day’s salary of the Junior Engineer (JE) or Assistant Engineer (AE) will be deducted.If this happens for five days in a row, one day’s salary of the Executive Engineer (EE) will be cut.If the same issue continues for seven days, the Deputy General Manager (DGM) or General Manager (GM) will face a similar deduction. No exceptions for weather or Technical Issues The order mentions that the 10-hour limit must be followed even if power demand increases due to wet soil, bad weather, or technical faults.A 15-minute margin has been allowed per day based on agricultural feeder meter readings. Any supply beyond that will count as a breach of the rules. Mandatory Compliance Reports All Superintending Engineers (SEs), Executive Engineers (EEs), and Assistant Engineers (AEs/JEs) must ensure strict compliance with the directive. Any violation must be reported to the company headquarters along with an action report. Congress Slams the Decision The Congress party has sharply criticised the order. State spokesperson Rahul Sharma posted a copy of it on X (formerly Twitter). He wrote that while BJP leaders promise to provide enough electricity to farmers, this order shows their “double standards.” Sharma said, “If an employee provides power for more than 10 hours, their salary will be cut. This BJP government has crossed all limits of hypocrisy. It seems Chief Minister Mohan Yadav is determined to trouble farmers in every possible way.” ​