NEW DELHI: In view of the attack launched by the Congress MLAs against the poor power and water situation in the Capital and failure of the Delhi Government to respond to their pleas, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has summoned an emergency meeting of the private power discoms on Saturday to discuss the issues involved.

Ms. Dikshit was criticised at the meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) on Tuesday for ignoring important issues like water and power and instead taking up matters like holding marriages in farmhouses and misuse of residential properties for commercial purposes. The Delhi Cabinet had on Thursday deliberated on the power situation in the Capital and the performance of the discoms as well as the Power Department.

Surprisingly, apart from the Chief Minister and the Chief Secretary, the latest to join the bandwagon of those defending the power companies is Power Minister Haroon Yusuf.

While Mr. Yusuf has been talking about preventing theft by setting up special police squads and also highlighting the fact that residential areas were indulging in massive theft, he has done little to seek accountability of the discoms on problems faced by the consumers including inflated bills, fast running meters and frequent power breakdowns.

``Mr. Yusuf has gone out of the way to bat for the discoms. He should wake up to the ground realities and respond to the situation accordingly.

If the MLAs as well as the poor consumers are crying foul, there must be something seriously wrong. The Power Minister cannot ignore their sentiments,'' said a senior Minister.

It is learnt that Ms. Dikshit is now preparing the ground to face the CLP meeting on December 17 convened specially to discuss the water and power issues. She is believed to have summoned a meeting of the discoms at her residence on Saturday where a status report would be sought on a number of issues including redress of people's grievances.

It is understood that the authorities have also finalised the terms and reference of the Public Grievance Committee set up under Kalkaji MLA Subhash Chopra and the same would be notified soon.

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