Faulty power policy bleeding state: AAP

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 3

Releasing a “white paper” on the state’s power sector, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) today claimed that the state power utility would incur a loss of Rs3,745 crore due to “faulty” power purchase agreements (PPAs) with private thermal plants this fiscal.

Party leaders said if voted to power, AAP would review these agreements as also the Punjab Power Generation Policy of 2010 and get a high-level investigation done to fix the accountability of those responsible for the loss.

AAP spokesperson Chander Suta Dogra and legal wing incharge Himmat Singh Shergill said this was the result of government’s incorrect projection of power shortage on the basis of which new projects were approved in the last few years.

Dogra said Punjab Power Policy, 2010, was drafted on the basis of Gujarat’s policy of 2009. She claimed that a specific clause in Gujarat’s policy stipulated that the state would get 20 per cent power from private thermal plants at concessional rates.

“However, this clause is missing in Punjab’s policy that will cause a loss of Rs774 crore this year alone. This clearly suggests that the policy was twisted to favour private generators,” she alleged.

“As against the capacity to generate more than 17,000 million units (MU) annually, the state’s own plants will generate 7,308 MUs in 2016-17, so that the state can buy expensive power from private producers,” said the AAP leaders.