LUCKNOW: BJP MLAs today walked out of the Vidhan Sabha after they did not get a satisfactory reply from the government on the issue compensating Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL) for providing cheap power in rural areas.
Replying to a question raised by BJP member Suresh Kumar Khanna, Minister of State for Power, Yasir Shah said that the state government was not compensating UPPCL for providing cheap power in rural areas.
When another BJP member Radhamohan Das Agarwal sought to know from the government whether it intends to compensate UPPCL for the cheap power in rural areas as its burden shifts on the urban customers.
The minister when said that the government has no plans to hike tariff of rural areas, BJP members alleging that they were not getting reply of their question jumped into the well demanding specific answer.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mohd Azam Khan too said that the state government will not put the burden on rural customers as desired by the BJP members leading to bedlam for sometime.
Later, BJP members staged a walkout alleging that the state government was not giving correct replies to questions raised by opposition and diverting issues.
Earlier, Power Minister had told the House that UPPCL owed Rs 49755.72 crore to different banks and financial institutions as on March 31, 2014.
He said to bail out distribution companies in different states from financial crisis Union Ministry of Power had in October 2012 approved Financial Reorganisation Scheme, which had been implemented in UP.
He also said as per the scheme bonds of Rs 15,810.38 crore would be acquired by the government in the next three years, and till the time the bonds were totally acquired the interest liability would lie on the state government.
He said that repayment of remaining loans of Rs 33,945.34 crore along with interest has to be paid by the discoms in next seven years from the financial year 2015-16.
Shah said to strengthen the discoms financially and for a turn around by 2017-18 financial reorganisation scheme has been launched.
When BJP member Khanna asked about losses in the previous financial years, he said that in 2012-13 losses were of Rs 9,778 crore, whereas it stood at Rs 7,042 crore in 2013-14.
Shah said in 2013-14 line losses were 39.57 per cent and campaign was being carried out to check power pilferage and line losses.