Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) has strongly hit back at Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on power reforms stating that it was on April 27 last year the Centre had sent the power policy to the State government in which it was clearly stated that prepaid energy (smart) meters had to be fixed all categories of consumers in a phased manner.
Addressing a press conference here on Tuesday, Minister for Energy G. Jagadish Reddy along with MP B. Lingaiah Yadaiah and legisaltors G. Kishore Kumar, M.S. Prabhakar and K. Damodar Reddy said while a debate was going on power reforms across Telangana for the last 3-4 days, the BJP leaders, including Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy, were speaking on other issues instead of giving clarity on reforms.
He explained that through a gazette notification issued on August 17 last year, by the Ministry of Power (Centre) had mandated installation of smart prepaid energy meters to all categories of consumers, feeders and distribution transformers by December 2025. The Centre was trying to push reforms through the backdoor and that was the reason why it was hesitating to introduce the Electricity (Amendment) Bill.
The notification also specified that the exercise shall begin with fixing prepaid meters to all consumers in electrical divisions having more than 50% consumers in urban areas with aggregate technical and commercial losses of over 15% in 2019-20, other divisions with over 25% losses and all government office from block level and above by December 2023.
Mr. Jagadish Reddy said by introducing reform-based distribution scheme the Centre had linked financial assistance to States with the reforms and as Telangana had not agreed for it, it was losing ₹5,000 crore every year. On the other hand, the Centre was extending financial assistance to the States that were toeing the Centre’s line on reforms.
He alleged that fixing prepaid energy meters to all categories of consumers was a prelude to privatisation of distribution business, wherein the consumers would be at the mercy of corporate companies in the matter of tariff.
Instead of speaking on such matters of power reforms Mr. Kishan Reddy, State BJP president Bandi Sanjay and others were reeling out lies and misinformation, Mr. Jagadish Reddy and also ridiculed their claims of Centre giving rice, water and others to Telangana. “They are speaking as if the Centre is giving alms to States. Whatever Telangana is getting from the Centre is its constitutional right,” he asserted.
