KCR advocates national policy to ensure quality power for all sectors

HYDERABAD:  Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Sunday said there is a need for a comprehensive national policy to ensure uninterrupted supply of quality power to all sectors. 
Not even half the captive power generated in India is being utilised, and thus, several parts of the country don’t have electricity and many regions have frequent power cuts, he alleged.

Power Finance Corporation (PFC) chairman Rajiv Sharma, who visited power plants and the Kaleshwaram project for three days, called on Rao at Pragathi Bhavan on Sunday.

“When the state of Telangana was formed in 2014, there was a severe power crisis. Power deficit became a hindrance to development. We decided that unless we solve the power problem, the state cannot progress. We adopted a comprehensive plan to set the power sector in order, and within six months, we lifted power cuts. Now, we are able to supply quality power to all sectors, and have a network to utilise 20,000 MW,” the chief minister said.

Rao added that monetary support from the PFC helped in setting up power plants and revamping electricity-related institutions. He thanked the PFC chairman for extending financial aid for irrigation projects, and said that with the PFC’s help, Telangana quickly solved its power crisis, and is now marching towards becoming a power-surplus state. The chief minister felicitated Sharma and his wife, and presented mementos to them.

Speaking about the Kaleshwaram project, Sharma said it was a sheer wonder he initially felt may not be feasible.

Speaking about the Kaleshwaram project, Sharma said, “When we came to Hyderabad three-and-a-half years back, the chief minister told us about the project and showed us on a screen how it would be. I was surprised after watching that, and wondered if it would be possible. But when I visited the Kaleshwaram project yesterday, I saw barrages and the pump houses. I also saw the way water from the Godavari is being pumped. It is a sheer wonder.” 

“To complete such a project in a short span of time is not easy. The efforts of the chief minister bore fruit. At New York’s Time Square, Kaleshwaram is bring projected as one of the rarest success stories,” he added. The chief minister, the PFC chairman, and Chief Secretary SK Joshi praised TS Genco and Transco CMD D Prabhakar Rao saying that he was behind the success of the power sector in the state. While the chief minister pointed out that power projects were being fast tracked, Joshi said that Prabhakar Rao, who completed 50 years in the power sector, was like the Bhishmacharya in the sector. Speaking on the occasion, Prabhakar Rao said good results were possible due to the chief minister, who had a deep understanding of the power sector. “The entire credit for solving the power crisis should go to shri KCR,” Prabhakar Rao said.