Chandigarh, April 30
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today staged dharnas across the State in protest against the prolonged power cuts being imposed in both rural and urban areas causing suffering to all sections of society. Disclosing this, SAD senior Dr. Daljit Singh Cheema said the dharnas were organised at the constituency level and were ably supported by the senior leadership as well as the party rank and file. “The dharnas witnessed a huge response from local people who are fed up by the repeated supply disruption as well as the callousness of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in dealing with the problem”, Dr Cheema asserted.
In a message on the occasion, party president Sukhbir Singh Badal while castigating the Chief Minister for failing to make timely short term power purchases as well as ink power exchange agreements with the hill States in advance, thanked the party cadre as well as Punjabis at large for giving a strong message to the AAP government that this callousness would not be tolerated. He said it was a matter of concern that while Punjab continued to suffer due to prolonged and frequent power cuts, the AAP government remained busy in fake publicity and hollow campaigns.
Giving details, Badal said, “During the SAD’s tenure (2007-17), we established new thermal, solar, hydel and biomass power plants and transformed Punjab into a power surplus state. Unfortunately, both the previous Congress and Aam Aadmi Party governments failed to add even a single additional unit of power to meet the rising demand, pushing the state back into a severe power deficit”. He also assured that once the SAD formed the government in 2027, it would once again make Punjab power surplus. “Punjabis will get 24×7 uninterrupted electricity under the next SAD government. This is my solemn commitment”, he added.
