LUCKNOW, July 3 -- Power sector employees across the country staged coordinated demonstrations on Wednesday, backing electricity workers in Uttar Pradesh who are opposing the state government's move to privatise two power distribution companies, UP Vidyut Karmchari Sanyukt Sangharsh Samiti claimed here. The protest was organised under the banner of the National Coordination Committee of Electricity Employees and Engineers (NCCOEEE), which has also called for a nationwide strike on July 9. In UP, power workers gathered at multiple locations, including the headquarters of Madhyanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited (MVVNL) in Lucknow, to oppose the government's plan to privatise two state-owned power distribution companies. Shailendra Dubey, convener of the UP Vidyut Karmchari Sanyukt Sangharsh Samiti, said, "The UP government is misleading the public with manipulated figures of financial losses to justify privatisation. The actual burden is due to flawed power purchase agreements and the government's failure to reimburse subsidies." Dubey alleged that under current agreements, private power producers are receiving thousands of crores even without supplying electricity. He said, "Over Rs 14,000 crore is owed by government departments, and subsidies of nearly Rs 22,000 crore, meant for farmers, poor households, and weavers, are being misrepresented as distribution losses." He also criticised the government for not initiating any discussions with power employees despite seven months of peaceful agitation. "If there is any attempt to suppress or take action against protesting employees, the responsibility will lie with the government," he warned....