CHENNAI: Former electricity minister and DMK leader V Senthil Balaji on Thursday accused the TVK government of releasing a white paper on the power sector “to conceal several facts” and to suit its own ends, asserting that the previous DMK regime had laid the foundation for stable power supply and reducing TNEB’s revenue deficit.
Speaking to reporters at Anna Arivalayam, Balaji said that the previous DMK government had reduced the revenue deficit to Rs 34,000 crore, which is a bigger reduction than that under the previous AIADMK regime.
“Many facts have been suppressed and the white paper has been prepared to suit them. We increased revenue not only through tariff hikes but through reforms,” he said, adding that the white paper had been brought out “with an ulterior motive”.
Referring to the debt, Balaji said the board was already saddled with a Rs 1.59 lakh crore debt when the DMK took charge in 2021.
“Over five years, we paid Rs 75,000 crore as interest on the loans taken in the power sector. Why was this not disclosed in the white paper? Why was the truth hidden from the people,” he asked.
On recruitment, Senthil Balaji said Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay had issued 401 appointment orders the previous day, “all of them were selected during the DMK regime”, adding that the TVK government was “pasting stickers” on the DMK’s work.
“Appointments and promotions that remained pending could not be completed earlier because of the poll-time model code of conduct, and promotions had been given every year on a seniority basis,” Senthil Balaji added.
Rejecting the claim that no new project was launched under the DMK, he listed the North Chennai (Ennore) thermal station, and the Udangudi, Kundah and Kollimalai thermal stations among projects taken up and completed during the party’s tenure, with the Thoothukudi thermal project in its final stage. He said 423 substations had been sanctioned, many of which were already in use.
