VIJAYAWADA: Days after former chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu alleged that the decisions of the YSRC government with respect to renewable power purchase agreements were ‘damaging’ the State’s brand, Energy Minister Balineni Srinivasa Reddy shot back claiming that the TDP chief’s governance led to Discoms becoming debt-ridden. He alleged that Naidu left behind liabilities worthRs 20,000 crore for the power utilities, and added that the Jagan Mohan Reddy government was working towards easing the burden.
In a statement on Sunday, the minister alleged that the previous government’s corrupt practices pushed the power utlities into a debt trap. “After Jagan took over as CM, the State has been focusing on bringing in transparency and every decision of ours reflects that vision. We are clearing the dues one at a time, besides working to bring down the power purchase costs. So far, for NTPC alone, we have cleared dues worthRs 3,414 crore, and anotherRs 1,200 crore was paid to other firms,” he noted.
Of theRs 1,200 crore paid,Rs 700 crore was release to private thermal stations, and the remaining was paid towards transmission dues. “Energy department is a key sector for the growth of our State and we are leaving no stone unturned to make the power utilities financially stable and efficient,” the minister concluded.