YSRCP criticises coalition government for buying power at high price
Visakhapatnam: Terming the agreement made by the NDA government with Axis Energy Venture Infra to buy power at Rs.4.60 per unit as a big scam, former Minister Gudivada Amarnath came down heavily on the government for burdening the people with increased power charges.
At a media conference held here on Monday, Amarnath pointed out that corruption is rampant as the coalition government intends to buy power at an exorbitant rate only to favour a few. “When YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government signed an agreement with SECI to buy power at Rs.2.49 per unit, the TDP and JSP created a big scene and propagated a false campaign that the state would be losing Rs.1.10 lakh crore.
Now, the same parties signed an agreement to buy power at almost double the cost per unit, Amarnath criticised, adding it shows the level of corruption that prevails. “The agreement includes a ceiling of 25 years which means the power cost remains unchanged at Rs.4.60 even if there is a slump in power price,” he stressed.
Misusing its discretionary powers, Amarnath said, the coalition government threatened the regulatory body too.
From Rs.29,000 crore in 2014, the dues to power companies rose to Rs.86,300 crore by 2019.
With a CAGR at 24 percent, it came to 7.2 percent in the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s government despite the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic. The power sector witnessed growth in the YSRCP’s tenure after the defect policies in the TDP’s rule, Amarnath recalled.
TDP chief N. Chandrababu Naidu promised during elections that he would not increase power tariff and would in turn slash the rates. However, with increased power cost per unit, he is imposing an additional burden of Rs.15,000 crore on people, the former minister stressed.
Referring to those who spoke against YS Jagan Mohan Reddy alleging corruption, Amarnath demanded an apology as the former Chief Minister intended to supply nine hours of uninterrupted free power to farmers.
Former Minister Gudivada Amarnath speaking at a media conference held in Visakhapatnam on Monday.
