HYDERABAD: Alleging that the BRS government was spreading lies on fixing meters to agriculture motors and privatisation of the power sector, Union Power Minister RK Singh said that Telangana did not even give its consent for the completion of the 3x800 MW second phase of the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) in Ramagundam.
Speaking to the media here on Thursday, the Union minister said that the Centre never asked the State to fix metres to agriculture motors. “The State government’s claim is totally false,” he said.
He also alleged that the Telangana government was spreading lies about the privatisation of the power sector. The State-owned Discoms would continue to function in future too, he added. On the NTPC-Ramagundam thermal power plant, the Union Minister said that the first unit of the plant (1X800MW) would launch its commercial operations on September 26. The second unit (1X800MW) would start commercial operations in the second week of December.
He, however, said that the Telangana government has not given its consent for the second phase of NTPC so far. Though the assurance to set up the thermal plant (5X800MW) in Ramagundam was given in the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014, the State government has not signed PPA so far for the second phase, he said.The Union minister, however, said that the NTPC's second phase would be completed. “If Telangana does not want power from NTPC, so many other states require power. We will complete the NTPC and give power to other states,” Singh said.
It worth mentioning here that Telangana would get 85 per cent of the total power generated by NTPC-Ramagundam. The remaining 15 per cent would go to the Central pool. Union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy alleged that the State government was making a false claim, stating that it was providing 24x7 power to farmers.