Yogi Adityanath said that the government was ready to invite private investment

Ruling out privisation in the Power sector, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that the government was ready to invite private investment as improvement in distribution required huge investments and would mean that the common people could get quality power. “There is no question of privatization of the distribution sector.  We were just inviting private companies to invest in the sector in the state and to provide better facilities to consumers. But still the opposition was doing politics to stall the process,” Yogi told reporters at the state BJP office on the 38th Foundation Day of the party in Lucknow on Friday. “It was not at all a privatization process as highlighted by the opposition,” he clarified about a recent move which had the Power emplyees on the war path. The CM said that around 7000 majras (habitats) in the state were yet to be electrified while power theft was a big problem.

“ We need big investments in the Power sector so that people in far flung areas can get uninterrupted power. After the BJP came to power a year ago, the situation has improved and now all 75 districts were getting adequate power which was earlier confined to just four districts,” he said. The Chief Minister has also denied opposition charges of discrimination in acting against some leaders involved in ‘Bharat Bandh’ violence on April 2 last. “The government  was taking action against those people who were actually involved in the violence and their photos are on video recording. We have enough evidences against them and they can not deny their involvement in the arson. The police was acting in an impartial way and no one could question their action,” Yogi said. The CM was reacting to BSP charges of targeting their leaders over large scale violence in the state during Bharat Bandh on April 2, over a recent Apex Court order. Several senior BSP leaders have been arrested in west UP while some others could be arrested soon. Yogi, said that his government was working on the strict ideology of ‘ Sabka Saath ,Sabka Vikas’ and there was no discrimination. The CM also detailed how the state government had worked for the people of the state. “Construction of over seven lakh houses under ‘PM Aawas Yojana’ along with implementation of free ‘Ujjawala Yojgna’ for LPG cylinders and ‘Saugbhagya Yojana’ for power connection have benefited the poor in the state a lot,” he added.