BHUBANESWAR : Launching an attack on the state government over its alleged failure to ensure uninterrupted and quality power to the people, the BJD on Monday demanded a CAG audit into the expenditure on strengthening electricity infrastructure since Tata Power took over the distribution system.
Addressing a media-conference here, party MLAs Arun Sahoo and Dibyashankar Mishra said when Tata Power took over power distribution in Odisha in 2022, it had announced that Rs 5,000 crore will be invested in five years for strengthening power infrastructure. However, unscheduled power cuts and low voltage have become a routine now.
The BJD leaders said the Odisha Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC) in March this year had advised the state government to take steps for CAG audit of the all distribution companies including details of revenue collection, expenditure on infrastructure development, profit and loss. “However, the government has remained silent on the issue, raising suspicion,” they said.
They also alleged large-scale irregularities in installation of smart meters in the state. “While the price of smart meters in other states as Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Karnataka is less than `3,000, the distribution companies here are charging nearly `4,000,” they said.
They also questioned when the state government had provided a grant of `735 crore to Tata Power to fund a statewide smart meter rollout, why was the meter rent collected from consumers not being refunded to them.