FOR several months, public anger had been simmering over forcibly imposed smart meters, resulting in exorbitant electricity bills and the arbitrary and insensitive behaviour of electricity board officials, across the Thane-Palghar districts of Maharashtra. Following the massive 50,000-strong CPI(M)-led Long March to the Palghar District Collectorate from January 19 to 21, 2026, the District Collector, apart from several written assurances regarding the implementation of the Forest Rights Act (FRA) and other burning land issues, had also given a written assurance that the exorbitant electricity bills would be reduced and that consumers would not be forced to install smart meters against their wish. However, the Collector, while striving to implement the FRA and land-related promises, could not keep this assurance.

How are people expected to react when thousands of families living in tiny huts, with barely one or two dimly lit bulbs, perhaps a fan at most, and often without electricity for several hours a day, receive electricity bills amounting to Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000? In sheer anger and frustration, over 35,000 people under the leadership of the CPI(M) Thane-Palghar district committee blocked the Mumbai–Delhi National Highway at Charoti in Dahanu tehsil of Palghar district for full three hours on September 10, 2026. The remarkable thing about this action was that a little over half the agitators were women. This unprecedented action stunned the police and the administration, who could do nothing against such a massive gathering.

This huge action did not happen overnight. Numerous meetings were held in villages and hamlets across the district. The people of Palghar came to understand that the issue was not merely exorbitant electricity bills. At its root was a plan to privatise electricity and gradually hand over the entire power sector to the Adani group. The CPI(M), along with all class and mass organisations, mobilised the affected people and gave expression to this public anger by blocking the national highway—yet in an extremely disciplined manner, without allowing the protest to be marred by any untoward incident.

The Thane–Palghar district units of the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS), the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), the Students’ Federation of India (SFI), and the Adivasi Adhikar Rashtriya Manch (AARM) participated with great strength.

Despite torrential rain, not a single protester backed down. Thousands of them just opened their umbrellas, which became a wonderful sight on the national highway. Thousands more without umbrellas got completely drenched. All the leading activists addressed the gathering in brief but pointed speeches. CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Dr Ashok Dhawale and Central Committee member Vinod Nikole, MLA, were the main speakers. They strongly exposed the arbitrary conduct of electricity board officials and the insulting and high-handed manner in which consumers were being treated. They also launched a sharp attack on the Modi government at the Centre and the Fadnavis government in the state over their conspiracy of the privatisation of electricity and handing over the entire power sector to their corporate masters, to the detriment of the people. Both the governments were also flayed over a range of issues affecting the people of Palghar—such as the Wadhvan Port project, which threatens to displace tens of thousands of peasants and fisherfolk and destroy the ecology –for the benefit of Adani; the sorry state of tribal ashram schools; the collapse of the education system; unemployment among the youth; and the betrayal of women in the name of the state government’s ‘Ladli Behana’ scheme.

Even after three hours, people were not ready to clear the huge six-lane highway even by an inch. On the contrary, the protesters appeared determined to intensify the agitation. Finally, the agitation was withdrawn only after top electricity board officials came to the spot and gave a written assurance. According to this written assurance, from the very next day, September 11, a special 15-day drive would be conducted at all electricity board offices across the district and immediate action would be taken to review and reduce the exorbitant electricity bills of consumers. For doing so, the old pre-smart meter electricity bills would be taken as the base. This marked a significant victory for the struggle. All activists will be at the electricity offices and personally ensure that this written assurance is actually implemented.