Revanth Reddy accused BRS government of signing with Union government to fix meters on agri pumps but documents he raised contradict claim.
Published Jul 28, 2024 | 12:23 PM ⚊ Updated Jul 28, 2024 | 12:23 PM
Revanth Reddy (X)
Did Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy commit a political hara-kiri in the state Assembly on Saturday, 27 July, by arguing that the erstwhile BRS government had signed an agreement with the Union government for installing meters to agriculture pump sets?
The chief minister, intervening in the debate on the budget for 2024-25, took the previous BRS government to task in his inimitable style, accusing it of acting against the interests of the farmers.
He substantiated his point by holding aloft copies of the agreement in the House saying that the previous government had also set a timeline for installing meters.
The page from the 2017 document that Revanth Reddy was referring to.
Finally, it turned out that the chief minister was hasty in arriving at the conclusion as the agreement was for the Ujjwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY) scheme which sought to replace the existing meters with smart meters for all except the agriculture connections.
The agreement under the head “The Telangana DISCOMS to take following measures,” said there should be 100 percent metering of distribution transformers and feeders by 30 June, 2017.
“Installation of smart meters for all consumers other than agriculture consumers consuming above 500 units per month by 31 December, 2018, and consumers consuming above 200 units per month by 31 December 2019,” it said.
The agreement was signed on 4 January, 2017 by the government of Telangana, Telangana State Power Distribution Companies and the Union Ministry of Power for achieving turnaround of Telangana State Power Distribution Companies.
Showing a copy of the agreement in the House, the chief minister had said that it was a sell-out to the Union government on fixing of meters and that in case of violation of the agreement, the discoms are liable for action by the Union government.
“Now the Union government has put the state in a difficult situation because of this agreement. This is nothing but a great atrocity committed on the people,” he said.
Not stopping at that, Revanth Reddy went ballistic against the BRS saying why the interests of Telangana did not flash through the BRS leaders’ minds when the government officials were signing the agreement.
“The BRS hid the agreement as it knew that the people would sentence the state government to death if it ever came out into the open,” he said and pointed out that the BRS had surrendered the DISCOMS to the Union government and now the pink party leaders were making a show that they are saviours of Telangana farmers.
“The BRS owe an unconditional apology to the people,” he said.
In fact, BRS MLA and former minister Harish Rao was surprised when Revanth Reddy held out the copy of the agreement in the House as it was quite unexpected.
Earlier, he spoke at length on how the previous government led by his party had foregone the relaxation of up to 0.5 percent of the GSPD — over and above the FRBM limit — for raising loans as it was not prepared to kneel down to the Union government’s line of installing meters to the agriculture pump sets.
The sudden disclosure of the agreement by Revanth Reddy came as a shocker to him.
“Let the chief minister send the copy of the agreement to me and I will react to it when the Assembly meets on its next business day,” he said.
The chief minister sent the document to Harish Rao and the latter spoke of it while speaking to media persons on Saturday evening.
He said the document that the chief minister had shown in the House was dated 4 January, 2017. The document said that the DISCOMS have to install smart meters to all connections barring agriculture connections.
“I was referring to the guidelines from the Union government issued on 9 June, 2021. They said that the states which want a relaxation of the four percent ceiling of the state’s GSDP by another 0.5 percent for borrowings under the FRMB Act, have to install meters for the agriculture pump sets for which the BRS government had put its foot firmly down. As a result, we lost the eligibility to raise ₹30,000 crore per year,” he said.
“However, Revanth Reddy had tried to confuse the issue which was under discussion by bringing up an agreement and even in that there was no mention of the Discoms had consented to the installation of meters to agriculture pump sets,” Harish Rao added.
The communication sent to the state on 9 June, 2021 read as follows:
“The Fifteenth Finance Commission has recommended performance-based additional borrowing space of 0.5 percent of the GSDP in states in the power sector. The objective of the additional borrowing space is to improve the operational and economic efficiency of the sector and promote a sustained increase in paid electricity consumption.
The letter dated 9 June, 2021.
The communication said the special dispensation has been recommended for each year for four years from 2021-22 to 2024-25. This borrowing space will be in addition to the four percent of the GSDP. If the state intends to avail additional borrowing space and has fulfilled the prescribed criteria, an application may be sent to the ministry of power.”
What Harish Rao was saying was true since former chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao had raised the issue several times in the Assembly and outside explaining how he did not bow his head to the Union government when it asked him to sign on the dotted lines for installation of meters to agriculture pump sets if he wanted relaxation by 0.5 percent of the FRMB ceiling of raising loans.
It is more than likely that the BRS would go for the Congress’ jugular when the House meets on Monday for misleading the members by obfuscating the issue.
The agreement that Revanth Reddy had referred to clearly stated that the installation referred to smart meters to all connections excluding agriculture. It is quite possible that he did not read through the agreement carefully or he may have deliberately tried to put the BRS on the backfoot.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil)
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