Launching a scathing attack on the Congress government for taking the State a “dark age,” Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N. Chandrababu Naidu said on Wednesday that his party would organise an intensive agitation to mount pressure on the government to withdraw its proposed move to increase power tariff.
“The government has no right to collect power tariff as it has miserably failed to ensure assured supply to the consumers. The consumers need not pay power bills in such a scenario,” Mr. Naidu added.
Mr. Naidu was speaking at a public meeting in this village in Tirumalayapalem mandal before launching his “Vastunna Mee Kosam” padayatra in the district on the 100th day of his campaign. Earlier, a tribal woman inaugurated a 100-foot-high pylon constructed to mark successful completion of 100 days of the padayatra at Subledu crossroads near Madhiripuram on the Khammam-Warangal main road. Mr. Naidu unveiled the statue of party founder N. T. Rama Rao adjoining the giant pylon.
He announced that the TDP would organise dharnas in front of all electricity sub-stations on January 21, demonstrations before the ADE offices on January 25 and protests before the Collectorates on February 4 against the proposed increase in power tariff.
The Congress government had already increased power tariff directly and indirectly in the last couple of years imposing a huge burden of Rs. 14,641 crore on the consumers, he said alleging that the government had proposed to effect steep hike in power tariff to the tune of Rs. 31,517 crore. The proposed unprecedented hike would impose a back-breaking burden on the consumers, he said.
“In 2004, when we were in power, the State had become power surplus, thanks to the implementation of reforms with a bold face.
Also, during Telugu Desam rule, the transmission and distribution losses had come down to 22 per cent from 37 per cent. But subsequently, Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy destabilised the power sector by dolling out subsidies to the private power projects of his choice,” Mr. Naidu said and vowed to spearhead his ongoing padayatra with a missionary zeal to alleviate the sufferings of all sections of people. Khammam MP Nama Nageswara Rao, MLA Tummala Nageswara Rao and a host of senior leaders were present.