Bhatti blames BRS govt for power utilities debts

"The BRS government spread lies about the power availability and their financial health all these years. They made tall claims about power reforms",Bhatti Vikramarka said.

Hyderabad: While accusing the previous government of destroying the power sector in the State, Deputy Chief Minister and Energy Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka said his government would take necessary steps to improve the financial health of the power utilities in the State and implement the promises given to the people with regard to power sector.

Replying during the short discussion in the assembly on Thursday, the Energy Minister alleged that the BRS government through its wrong policies made state-run power utilities debt ridden. “The BRS government spread lies about the power availability and their financial health all these years. They made tall claims about power reforms. They claimed as if before they came to power there was no power generation in the State. The 24X7 free power supply claims of the BRS are false and misleading ,”he said.

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Except the Yadadri coal-fired supercritical thermal power plant and Bhadradri Thermal Power Plant, the previous government had not constructed a new plant, he said, adding that all the other plants were constructed or started during the Congress government in the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh. Except for these two power plants and the agreement with the Chhattisgarh government for supply of 1000 MW power, the BRS government did nothing in the last ten years to improve power availability, he alleged.

The Energy Minister pointed out that it was during the Congress led UPA government that power reforms were initiated in the country and that it was due the Congress government that under the AP Reorganisation Act-2014 Telangana received 1638 MW power at the time of bifurcation. “Had the BRS government had taken up power projects as per the guidelines of the UPA government, today the State would have installed a capacity of 38,000 MW,” he claimed.