CPI(M) seeks judicial probe into ₹2,500 crore smart meter project payments

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) has demanded a judicial inquiry into payments totalling nearly ₹2,500 crore linked to the agricultural smart meter project in Andhra Pradesh. State secretary V. Srinivasa Rao, addressing a press conference alongside party State secretariat member Ch. Babu Rao, said the three power distribution companies collectively paid this amount towards meters, allied equipment, software, and other project components.

Mr. Srinivasa Rao alleged that the previous YSR Congress Party government paid around ₹1,800 crore to Shirdi Sai Electricals before the meters were installed. He further stated that the present coalition government paid ₹764 crore as compensation for terminating the contract. The CPI(M) leader questioned the termination payment, noting it was made without the approval of the Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (APERC) and without a public hearing. He demanded that the termination agreement, payment details, and the basis for fixing the compensation be made public.

The agricultural smart meter project faced strong opposition from farmers' organisations, leading to a halt in installations. Mr. Srinivasa Rao recalled that TDP leaders had opposed the project while in the Opposition and had approached the High Court. He claimed the financial burden would ultimately fall on consumers, noting that similar meters cost ₹3,000 to ₹4,000 in some other States, while the expenditure in Andhra Pradesh exceeded ₹34,000 per meter. Mr. Babu Rao questioned the decision to pay ₹764 crore for terminating the Shirdi Sai Electricals contract when the project had earlier been challenged in the High Court.

In a separate matter, Mr. Srinivasa Rao sought a high-level inquiry into the deaths of three girls in the Chintur subdivision of Polavaram district within a short period. At Gollagutta village in Etapaka mandal, nearly 40 people were hospitalised after consuming anti-malaria tablets distributed by the government, with a girl named Jamuna subsequently dying. Another girl, Roja, had died earlier in the same village, while a student in Kunavaram mandal died after suffering from vomiting five days ago.

The CPI(M) leader demanded that the circumstances and causes of all three deaths be established and that ₹25 lakh compensation be paid to each family. He noted that the ₹5 lakh assistance announced for the family of Jahnavi following public pressure had not yet been released. Mr. Srinivasa Rao called for medical camps in every affected village, nutritional support, and immediate preventive measures against malaria.