Opposition parties and traders association have slammed the Yogi Adityanath government for steep hike in the power tariff in Uttar Pradesh particularly for the rural areas. The opposition said the government was waiting for the civic election to conclude for taking the unpopular decision. They said after the demonetization and GST, the hike in power tariff would prove to be another blow for the farmers, small business and the business community further.
Samajwadi Party spokesperson Rajendra Choudhury criticized the government for hike in the power tariff and said that it shows how the people are treated by the BJP. He said on one hand the BJP has promised to double the income of the farmers by 2022 while on the other the government has imposed additional burden on the farmers by increasing the power tariff.
Congress spokesperson Virendra Madan said that the hefty hike power tariff hike proves the insensitivity of the Yogi government.” They could have waited for end of the election model code of conduct for the civic polls to announce the new tariff rate’, he said. He said that the tariff hike would only add to the woes of the people already reeling under the twin impact of the demonetization and GST.
Meanwhile, Adarsh Vypar Mandal president Sanjay Gupta in a statement alleged that the traders would be worst hit by the hike in power tariff. “The government has ignored the government departments who are the big defaulters and it has chosen the soft option of increasing the tariff to bail out the UP Power Corporation limited (UPPCl) facing the financial crisis. He said the common people are being made to pay for the lapses of the UPPCl to recover its dues. He also demanded immediate withdrawal of the hiked power tariff.
Meanwhile, UP power consumers forum president Awdhesh Verma has criticized the UPSERC for steep hike in the power tariff. He said the forum will file a petition in the Commission on Friday to reconsider their decision. He said he would seek the support of the opposition parties for agitation against the hike in power tariff.