Chandigarh, April 27
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today said the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government was directly responsible for the eight to ten hour power cuts across the State because it failed to make short term power purchases, did not execute timely power exchange agreements with the hill States and could not indulge in immediate power trading due to lack of funds.
In a statement here, senior SAD leader Dr Daljit Singh Cheema said it was shocking that Punjab was suffering power cuts at a time when there was no demand of power from the agricultural sector. “It is a clear case of mismanagement”. He also condemned power minister Sanjiv Arora for making excuses to cover up his failures. “Arora is claiming that this situation occurred because of maintenance and up-gradation work. The fact of the matter is that the Talwandi Sabo thermal plant which was closed for maintenance some time back is back on track and only one unit of the Ropar thermal plant is presently closed”.
Dr Cheema said the truth was that the AAP government had failed to prevail upon the PSPCL to do short term power purchases even when there was sufficient prior warning that the summer season would start early. “Even power exchange agreements with the hill States, which results in release of power from the hill States of Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh to Punjab in the summer months, was delayed. This agreement will come into force only from May 1”.
The SAD leader said the government had failed to undertake power trading immediately as it was short of funds. “The PSPCL is also in dire straits because the government has not released the complete power subsidy due to it on account of provision of free power to farmers. This is why timely power was not purchased and people in both the rural and urban areas are suffering”. Asking chief minister Bhagwant Mann to intervene immediately, Dr Cheema said “if necessary power purchase steps are not taken the situation will worsen once farmers start tubewell operations.
