BIRGUNJ, Dec 27: Employees at Jagdamba Steel, Triveni Spinning Mill, and Hulas Steels in Simra, Bara, staged a protest against the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) for cutting off power lines.
The demonstration began on Tuesday morning, initiated by workers at Jagdamba Steel Industry. Subsequently, employees at Triveni Spinning Mill and Hulas Steel also joined the protest.
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With about 3,500 workers at Jagdamba Steel, 2,500 at Triveni Spinning, and 1,500 at Hulas Steels, the protesting workers carried placards. They plan to encircle the NEA office while submitting a memorandum to the District Administration Office.
The workers protested saying that their livelihoods were being jeopardized due to the industry shutdown following the power disconnection. They said that they have become victims due to the ongoing conflict between the industries and the NEA.
The controversy escalated during load-shedding when the NEA severed the discount bill, alleging that certain industries utilized electricity from dedicated and trunk lines, incurring premium charges. Tensions heightened after the NEA began disconnecting electricity lines for industries with power distributed through 'dedicated feeder' and 'trunk line,' which failed to pay electricity tariff.