Congress walkout in assembly over power cut, excess billing

Raipur, Nov 21 (UNI) Opposition Congress today staged a walkout in the Chhattisgarh Vidhan Sabha expressing serious concern over unscheduled power cuts and excess billing of consumers by the state electricity board (CSEB).

Raising the issue during the zero hour, Mr Bhupesh Baghel (Congress) said the entire system was in disarray as unscheduled load shedding has become the order of the day.

He said domestic and agriculture consumers were receiving heavy electricity bills, while heavy concessions in power tariff were being doled out sponge iron and cement plants.

Demanding an immediate discussion on their notice for adjournment motion on the issue, he said the electricity tariff for domestic consumers and for agriculture sector were increased substantially, while power tariff for major industrial groups were being slashed for the reason best known to the state government.

Leader of the opposition Mahendra Karma drew the attention of the House towards the problem of excess billing of domestic and other consumers.

He said there was no logic behind substantial increase in power tariff saying that unlike in other states, all the power plants within the state were located in the close proximity of coal mines.

He said many of these problems were the result of gross mismanagement.

Mr Yogiraj Singh, Mr Uday Mudaliar and Mohammad Akbar (all Congress) also pressed for taking up the adjournment motion for discussion, alleging that the power situation has turned so worse that the poor and middle class consumers were at the receiving end.

Speaker Prem Prakash Pandey said the members could raise these issues during the discussion on the annual report of state electricity board (CSEB) scheduled to be held later in the day.

Chief minister Raman Singh also said the government was ready to reply to the issues to be raised by the members during the discussion.

However, opposition Congress members pressed for taking up the adjournment motion and later staged a walkout.

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