KTR Accuses Congress Government of Pushing Telangana Into Power Crisis

BRS working president K.T. Rama Rao on Wednesday accused the Congress government of driving Telangana into a power crisis through mismanagement, poor planning and financial irregularities involving Singareni Collieries and GENCO. Speaking at a press conference at Telangana Bhavan, he said coal shortages at thermal plants and falling generation were causing hardship to farmers and industries across the State.

Mr. Rama Rao described electricity as the backbone of agriculture, irrigation, drinking water supply, industries, IT and domestic consumption. He said the BRS regime had raised Telangana's installed generation capacity from 7,778 MW to 19,472 MW, channelled nearly ₹1 lakh crore of investment into the sector and ensured uninterrupted free power to about 30 lakh agricultural pump sets.

He alleged that the current government was failing to maintain the infrastructure built by the previous administration, and that farmers in many areas were getting only six hours of supply instead of the promised 24 hours. Protests were being held at substations, he said, warning that inadequate power could lead to crop losses and a possible crop holiday.

Questioning the fall in generation, he said the 4,000 MW Yadadri Thermal Power Station was producing only about 400 MW, while a unit at the Bhadradri Thermal Power Station had stopped working. The 1,200 MW Singareni Thermal Power Plant at Jaipur was generating only around 544 MW because of coal shortages, he added.

Mr. Rama Rao further accused Singareni of supplying low-grade coal to GENCO, causing generation losses worth ₹2,900 crore. He repeated BRS allegations that 40 lakh tonnes of coal had gone missing and claimed the State government owed Singareni about ₹52,000 crore.

Rejecting the government's explanation that El Niño conditions were responsible, he attributed the crisis to administrative failure, corruption and mismanagement. He announced that six BRS teams would visit thermal power plants and Singareni facilities across the State on Thursday to assess coal stocks, generation levels, plant performance and financial issues, and would place their findings before the public.