Chandigarh: Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala Sunday alleged Haryana was facing a power crisis because the Manohar Lal Khattar-led BJP government failed to enforce the power purchase agreement with a private player and is instead supplying nearly 114 lakh units per day to it in a reverse flow. Surjewala, a former Haryana power minister, alleged that rural and urban consumers and the industrial sector have been hit hard because of insufficient supply of electricity, with daily cuts ranging from "12 to 20 hours".
The party's chief spokesperson said the state has not been getting 1,424 MW of contracted power from Adani Power, Mundra, Gujarat since 2021. "The Khattar government has miserably failed to secure even 1 megawatt of electricity out of 1,424 MW to be supplied by Adani Power, Mundra, Gujarat," Surjewala told a news conference here. The double whammy is that the BJP government is supplying almost 114 Lakh units of electricity per day to Adani Power, Gujarat in a reverse flow. At a first glance, it appears that not a single rupee is paid to Haryana's exchequer in lieu of electricity export to Mundra, Gujarat".
Surjewala asked whether the people of Haryana are suffering "12 to 20 hours of exceptional powercuts" in scorching heat "to supply Haryana's electricity to Gujarat, because of forthcoming elections in Gujarat?" The Congress leader also said Haryana's treasury bleeds further as the government is purchasing electricity from other private companies at higher rates to meet the shortfall. Surjewala said that on August 7, 2008, a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) was signed by Power Utilities of Haryana with Adani Power, Mundra, Gujarat for the supply of 1424 MW for 25 years at a tariff of Rs. 2.94/Kwh.
A dedicated power line was also laid from the Adani Power Plant at Mundra, Gujarat to Mahendragarh, Haryana to supply the electricity, he said. "Instead of enforcing the PPA with Adani Power, which has failed to supply contracted power since last year, the Khattar government proceeds to sign a three-year contract (15 April 2022 to 14 April 2025) for the purchase of power from MB Power, Madhya Pradesh and RKM Power, Chhattisgarh for Rs. 5.70 and Rs. 5.75 per unit respectively," he said. He said the data from the Northern Regional Load Dispatch Centre (NRLDC) reflects that electricity is being sent from Mahendragarh (Haryana) to Mundra (Gujarat) instead of the power flowing from Mundra to Mahendragarh.
Daily reports of NRLDC from April 9 to April 29 reflect that Haryana's electricity is going to Mundra in a reverse flow, he said, while claiming no power was being exported between January 1, 2022, and April 8, 2022. As much as 2356.30 lakh units of electricity were exported from Haryana to Mundra, Gujarat between April 9 and 29, 2022, he said.
A sample report of Western Regional Load Despatch Centre dated April 29 establishes that there was an import of 11.49 MU (114.90 Lakh Units) to Mundra, Gujarat from Mahendragarh, Haryana, he said.
"It is a broad-daylight dacoity on the rights of people of Haryana and it's a loot of the public exchequer. It is an unpardonable crime when Haryana is facing a power crisis. The chief minister should come forward and answer," he demanded. "This (the PPA) is a legally enforceable right of Haryana and by foregoing that this regime is destroying and compromising Haryana's interests and Chief Minister is accountable. Why is the Haryana government so helpless that it is not enforcing its contract," he asked.
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Surjewala further said the All India Power Engineers Federation has also written to the prime minister, Union power minister, and the chief ministers of Haryana and Gujarat "pointing out the default on the PPA signed by Adani Power with Haryana for a period of 25 years to supply 1424 MWs of electricity at Rs 2.94/Kwh". He said they have also pointed out the exceptional instance of reverse flow of power from Mahendragarh (Haryana) to Mundra (Gujarat), to the peril of people of Haryana. He also accused the state government of failing to produce a single unit of electricity for the last eight years, and instead surrendering the state's share of electricity in the Jharli power plant six years back.
PTI
