Agartala, Aug 9 (IANS) Amid a series of protests by opposition parties, including the CPI (M) and Congress, over exorbitant electricity bills, the BJP government in Tripura on Sunday announced that it would take steps to address the problems faced by consumers.
Power Minister Ratan Lal Nath said the BJP-led government was committed to resolving public grievances and would soon take decisions on issues related to electricity bills. “The present state government is a government that solves problems, and soon the government will take some decisions to solve the problems related to electricity bills,” Nath said after chairing a meeting at the office of the Tripura State Electricity Corporation Limited (TSECL) here.
TSECL Managing Director Biswajit Basu, top officials, senior managers, Director (Finance) and other senior officials attended the meeting, while Power Secretary Abhishek Singh joined it virtually.
Nath said he had instructed the officials to examine consumer complaints and resolve genuine problems by maintaining a cordial relationship with consumers. “I have instructed them to look into whether there are any problems or not, and if there is any problem, to solve it by consulting with the consumers and maintaining a cordial relationship,” he said.
He also directed officials to respond promptly to complaints and visit the affected areas at the earliest to resolve the issues. The minister said the government had already discussed various issues concerning TSECL with Chief Minister Manik Saha, Finance Minister Pranajit Singha Roy, Chief Secretary Jitendra Kumar Sinha, Finance Secretary and Power Secretary.
Nath clarified that the recent increase in the fixed charge, Fuel and Power Purchase Cost Adjustment (FPPCA) and energy charge was made by the Tripura Electricity Regulatory Commission (TERC), an autonomous regulatory body, and not by the state government.
“Whenever they try to hike something, they give advertisements and then seek suggestions before taking decisions. TSECL is not responsible for increasing or decreasing the electricity bill,” he said. However, he said the government had discussed the matter in detail and would take appropriate steps to address the problems faced by consumers.
The minister also said around 1.5 lakh prepaid meter consumers had faced difficulties in recharging their meters due to server-related problems. “We have decided that consumers can pay their recharge amount in six months in instalments, or if they want, they can pay the entire amount directly,” Nath said.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Manik Saha on Saturday chaired a high-level meeting with the Power Minister, Finance Minister and senior officials, including the Chief Secretary, to review issues concerning the Power Department.
Senior officials of TSECL also attended the meeting. “Besides the Power Department-related issues, during the meeting, we reviewed the progress of various ongoing works under Agartala Smart City. Discussions were also held on the repair and maintenance of National Highways and PWD roads across the state,” Saha said in a post on his X handle.
However, Tripura Leader of Opposition and CPI (M) state Secretary Jitendra Chaudhury alleged that the state-owned power corporation, which was profitable during the previous Left Front regime, had incurred losses running into thousands of crores under the BJP-led government.
Chaudhury, while talking to the media on Sunday, alleged that the financial condition of TSECL deteriorated significantly after the BJP came to power in 2018 and blamed the government’s policies and alleged mismanagement for the growing financial burden on the power sector.
“After the BJP government came to power in 2018, five electrical divisions of TSECL were handed over to private companies, leading to mismanagement and losses in the power sector and causing suffering to the people and consumers,” he alleged.
The CPI (M) leader demanded that the government make public the corporation’s financial position and explain the reasons behind the reported losses.
–IANS
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