BJP slams BJD for frequent power cuts, high tariff

BHUBANESWAR: The BJP on Thursday came down heavily on the State government for frequent power cuts in the sweltering heat despite the availability of power, and failure to keep its promise to supply uninterrupted power at an affordable price. Lashing out at the government, BJP spokesperson Satyabrat Panda told a media conference that an artificial power crisis has been created to save the power bill of Tata Power.

Dubbing the power crisis as a big scam, Panda said the State has created record in the country by producing maximum coal. All the thermal power stations of the State including the independent power plants and NTPC plants are getting adequate coal supply. There should not be any shortage of power. Besides, the State has a hydropower generating capacity of 2,159 MW and the water level in all the reservoirs are comparatively better than last year. 

Seeking an explanation from the State government about the reason for frequent power cuts. Panda said the people wanted to know if it is load shedding or system failure. The State government claimed to have spent Rs 20,000 crore to strengthen electricity supply and the distribution facility. How could it handover the management to Tata Power for a minuscule amount of Rs 700 crore, he asked.

Recalling that the cost of power was only Rs 1.20 per unit for the first 50 units in 2000, Panda said that now the consumers are paying Rs 3 per unit. Similarly, the price per unit for consumption over 400 units has gone up from Rs 2.60 to Rs 6.20. Even after two and half decades of pioneering the power sector reforms, the consumers of the State are yet to get quality power at an affordable cost, he said. Many small industries have closed their shutters and power intensive industries are moving to other states due to the high cost of power in Odisha, he said.