Botsa opposes hike in power tariff

Hyderabad, March 31 : PCC president Botsa Satyanarayana on Sunday opposed the hike in power tariff as proposed by the Electricity Regulatory Commission.

Addressing a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan, Botsa appealed to the State Government either to defer implementation of hike in power tariff or bear the burden itself. He assured that all steps would be taken to ensure that the farmers, middle-class and poor were not affected due to the hike. He admitted that the hike in power tariff was against the policies of the Congress although the party never said that it would never increase the power charges.

Botsa said that there was a huge demand-supply gap of 62 Million Units and steps were being taken to bridge the gap. He said although the government was buying power from other States, it was facing difficulties due to inadequate infrastructure and high costs in its transmission to the State.

The PCC president said that the Centre would be pressurised to increase the gas supply to the State.

Botsa also slammed the opposition for its criticism over energy crisis. He said despite knowing the situation and its causes, the opposition parties were trying to take political mileage from the issue. He blamed the erstwhile Telugu Desam Party Government for the present energy crisis in the State. INN