Hyderabad: Criticising the deputy chief minister’s statements on the state power sector, ex-minister T Harish Rao asked the govt: if the power supply is proper, why are farmers protesting at substations and coming on roads? He said that Bhatti Vikramarka, during his news conference on power issues, did not answer the questions raised by the BRS. Instead, unrelated documents and excuses were presented without giving clear answers, he alleged, adding that the ₹5,420 crore true-up power charges burden on the consumers was due to the failure of the Congress govt.He also questioned reports about an Energy Reforms Committee being proposed to take power sector companies, including Singareni, towards IPOs and fresh borrowings. He demanded that the govt make the related file and proposal public.In a statement on Wednesday, Harish Rao questioned why the govt could not answer the BRS on coal availability and power generation. He said the Union ministry of coal, through its communication dated Feb 15, 2018, had allocated 14 MTPA of G-9 grade coal from SCCL mines to the Yadadri Thermal Power Station. “Then why did the deputy CM claim that there was no such coal allocation?” Harish Rao asked.He also questioned the govt over the reported stoppage of 3,000 MW at Yadadri, 540 MW at Bhadradri and 800 MW at Kothagudem Thermal Power Station, and asked whether this was not a failure of power management.Harish Rao said the govt itself had stated that against a total generation capacity of around 140 million units, only 89 million units were being generated. He asked why the available capacity was not being fully utilised. He sought to know the govt’s stand on whether power plants should be located close to coal sources. The earlier Congress govt had established a thermal power plant in Rayalaseema, despite the region not having the required coal and water resources, he recalled.The ex-minister alleged that the ‘Site Visit Certificate’ condition in SCCL tenders resulted in higher-priced tenders and benefited certain contractors. He asked why the tenders had not been cancelled and why an inquiry had not been ordered. He asked the govt to clarify the agreement to supply power from the proposed 800 MW Singareni thermal power project to Rajasthan, saying Telangana’s own power requirements should be given priority.Harish Rao further alleged that the govt rejected an offer from NTPC to supply 1,600 MW of power to Telangana at a lower cost without additional investment, and asked whether this decision had contributed to the present power shortage.On the reported 40 lakh tonnes of coal stocks, he asked why taxes, coal cess and DMFT payments were allegedly made on stocks that are now said to be unavailable. “If those 40 lakh tonnes of coal were actually available, why is there a coal shortage today?” he asked.
