Hyderabad, April 18: The Left parties have decided to intensify their campaign against the latest hike in power tariff by launching a sustained struggle against the “harmful” policies being adopted by the government.
To begin with, the parties will take up awareness programmes including seminars to explain people about the power policy that was “inclined” towards rich and influential and aimed at scrapping the free power being supplied to farmers.
Representatives of 11 Left parties including the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the CPI who participated in a seminar here on Sunday expressed concern over the indirect burden cast on the people by the latest tariff order.
Addressing the participants, CPI (M) State secretary B.V. Raghavulu said the new tariff order had several hidden charges in it belying the government’s claims that charges for sections consuming above 300 units every month only had been increased. The government did not, however, mention about the burden being imposed on account of service charges amounting to Rs. 1,500 crore and the proposal to collect over Rs. 3,000 crore in the name of fuel surcharge adjustment.
The government had not clarified its stand on the applications for payment of fixed charges amounting to close to Rs. 3,000 crore being made by independent power producers who had not supplied power to the State so far. “The IPPs signed agreements on gas allocation with GAIL, but they are asking the State government to pay for non-availability of gas,” he said.
In addition, the government had initiated process for privatisation of power utilities in the form of pilot projects relating to handing over of maintenance of sub-stations in the name of franchisee model.
CPI State secretary K. Narayana criticised the Ministers for claiming that the Government was subsidising the hike proposed for consumers above 200 units a month. “Let the Ministers clarify whether they are paying the subsidy from their pockets or from the account of the ruling Congress,” he said.
He faulted Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy for his claims that the Government would implement the order issued by the Electricity Regulatory Commission (ERC).
–Agencies