The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Free power: CM hopes World Bank will see reason

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jun 27, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Free power: CM hopes World Bank will see reason

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, JUNE 26. Unfazed by the World Bank's critical comments on his Government's free power supply to the farm sector, the Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, has said that "we can't close our eyes to the distress faced by farmers."

Asked by reporters on Saturday about the bank's comments, the Chief Minister said that there was nothing new in it. The World Bank was generally not in favour of free power. He had in fact informally discussed about his Government's policies with bank officials when he met them earlier and they had assured him of funds for the urban and rural poverty alleviation programmes.

He said the Government would ensure that the power utilities were not starved of funds on account of the free power. Stating that the administration was aware of the problem of ground water, he said that ultimately the distress of the farmer had to be mitigated and that's why micro-irrigation was being encouraged. He expressed confidence that the World Bank would also see reason ( in free power supply).

He declined to comment when asked whether the Government had received any list from the People's War proposing its nominees for the dialogue.

The World Bank officials stated that they did not consider as a "good idea" the decision of the Government to give free power. The bank officials also indicated that they would review lending to some of Andhra Pradesh's programmes if the conditions central to their success had been altered.

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