The leader of opposition (LoP) in State assembly Yashpal Arya has said that on one hand the State government has affected a hike in electricity tariff and on another the power cuts have increased.  He said that in the assembly elections the BJP had promised to provide power and water 24 hours a day but it has fallen flat on its face. Arya said that unscheduled power cuts of seven to eight hours a day have hit the general public hard. “ People are not getting electricity but the government has handed over increased power bills. Recently the tariffs of BPL consumers, domestic, commercial and industrial categories have been hiked,’’ he said.

 Arya said that apart from long power cuts the people are suffering from the problem of low voltage. Attacking the government, the LoP said that officers of the power corporations are not picking up the phone of public representatives which shows that a coercive government and not a public welfare one is operating in the State.

He said that the state requires about 55 million units (MU) of electricity on normal days and  at present Uttarakhand ensures only 65 per cent of the total power from its own production and from the central quota, but there is a shortage of 35 per cent of the requirement  which is 10 MU.

Arya said that in the last few years, the government did not enter into proper power purchase agreements with the 99 MW Singoli-Bhatwadi project and two gas-based plants of Udham Singh Nagar of 450 MW and 250 MW capacity on time, which would have ensured no shortage of power today.

He demanded that the central government should provide electricity to Uttarakhand at cheaper rates and increase the quota of power received from the central pool to the State.