Durgapur: Permanent employees of Durgapur Projects Limited aged above 50 have been offered a voluntary retirement scheme, the first such move in Bengal's power sector sparking the threat of an agitation.

The 56-year-old utility has been suffering losses of over Rs 200 crore annually with loan repayments of Rs 240 crore and salaries of Rs 168 crore among its key liabilities.

Power minister Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay said DPL had around 1,600 permanent employees and only 450 of them (28 per cent) were above 50. The unit has several contractual workers, too.

On November 27, the state cabinet had approved a scheme under which DPL's assets and liabilities would be merged with the state's principal power utilities. Nearly 85 per cent would go to the West Bengal Power Development Corporation (WBPDCL).

"The regular manpower of DPL will be offered VRS if any employee is above 50 years of age... as in other public sector companies of the state government," states a December 8 notice signed by state power secretary Sunil Kumar Gupta.

The move has not gone down well with those likely to be affected at DPL, some of whom threatened to move court if the scheme is made compulsory.

Unions did not approve of the measure either. While Intuc leader Umapada Das said he had sent a letter to minister Chattopadhyay saying the decision won't be accepted, Citu's Pankaj Roy Sarkar threatened a movement.

Chattopadhyay, himself a trade union leader, said the scheme would not be foisted on anyone. "The 'V' in VRS stands for voluntary. The packages will be the best but if somebody does not want to opt for it, there will be no pressure," said the minister.

The Trinamul government had introduced VRS in the transport department in 2012 and around 900 employees opted for it.