He alleged the Rs 5,420 crore true up power charges burden on the consumers was due to the failure of the Congress govt.
He said Vikramarka during his press conference on power issues did not answer the questions raised by the BRS. Hyderabad: Criticising the deputy CM statements on state power sector, ex-minister T Harish Rao asked the govt if the power supply is proper, why are farmers protesting at substations and coming on roads. Instead, unrelated documents and excuses were presented without giving clear answers.
He said the Union Ministry of Coal, through its communication dated 15 February 2018, had allocated 14 MTPA of G-9 grade coal from SCCL mines to the Yadadri Thermal Power Station. Harish Rao said the govt itself had stated that against a total generation capacity of around 140 million units, only 89 million units were being generated. He asked the govt to clarify on the agreement to supply power from the proposed 800 MW Singareni thermal power project to Rajasthan, saying Telangana ’s own power requirements should be given priority. On the reported 40 lakh tonnes of coal stocks, asking why taxes, coal cess and DMFT payments were allegedly made on stocks that are now said to be unavailable.
The ex-minister said Site Visit Certificate condition in SCCL tenders was made and alleged that the condition resulted in higher-priced tenders and benefited certain contractors. “If those 40 lakh tonnes of coal were actually available, why is there a coal shortage today?” he asked. He also questioned reports about an Energy Reforms Committee being proposed to take power sector companies, including Singareni, towards IPOs and fresh borrowings. He demanded that the govt to make the related file and proposal public. He asked why the available capacity was not being fully utilised. He sought to know from the govt’s stand that power plants should be located close to coal sources. He asked why the tenders had not been cancelled and why an inquiry had not been ordered.
The earlier Congress govt had established a thermal power plant in Rayalaseema, despite the region not having the required coal and water resources, he recalled. In a statement on Wednesday soon after the deputy CM’s press meet, Harish Rao said questioned why the govt could not answer the BRS on coal availability and power generation.