Bhubaneswar, November 10: Amid protests by contractual employees over issues relating to their engagement and redeployment, Tata Power Central Odisha Distribution Limited (TPCODL) CEO Gajanan S. Kale on Tuesday shared the company’s position and key developments in the power distribution sector during a media interaction in Bhubaneswar.
Addressing the media, Kale said Tata Power’s Odisha distribution companies (Discoms) serve nearly one crore consumers across the state. Over the past six years, distribution losses have declined, while safety standards and customer services have improved, with consumer electricity tariffs remaining unchanged, he said.
Explaining the growth in the contractual workforce, Kale said TPCODL’s contractual employee strength had increased from approximately 6,000 in 2020 to around 15,300 at present, primarily due to the expansion in the number of consumers and electricity demand. Across all four Odisha Discoms, the total contractual workforce has crossed 55,000, nearly double the earlier strength, according to the company.
On the ongoing contractual employees’ protests, Kale clarified that no contractual employee had been retrenched, in accordance with government directives. He said only 374 employees out of approximately 15,300 contractual workers in TPCODL had been identified for redeployment, of whom around 200 had already moved to their new assignments.
The company has asked the concerned employees to report for duty by November 15, 2026. Kale said those willing to return could rejoin. However, if employees remained unavailable for duty, business associates would have to make alternative arrangements to ensure uninterrupted electricity distribution services across the state.
The TPCODL CEO emphasised that continuity of electricity services to consumers remained a priority amid the ongoing developments.
The company’s clarification comes against the backdrop of protests by contractual workers, who have raised concerns over their employment-related issues and proposed redeployment.
