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Nitish convenes all-party meeting on power crisis

Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has convened an all-party meeting here on January 29 to discuss the power crisis even as the main Opposition party RJD on Thursday organised a day-long dharna in the State Capital against the State Government’s failure to provide adequate power supply mainly to the farmers to irrigate their fields.

Mr. Kumar said it was necessary to discuss the power problem threadbare and seek suggestions from the Opposition parties to find out ways to overcome the power problem as well as lacunae prevailing in public distribution system (PDS) and preparation of below poverty line (BPL) list.

Taking a pot shot on the Opposition parties for burning his effigies in the backdrop of poor power supply in the State, Mr. Kumar had told the workers at the NDA headquarters on Wednesday to provide haystack, petrol and match boxes to RJD workers for flaming his effigies but in return the RJD would have to ensure that power scenario would improve by burning “my effigy... If agitation can improve the power situation I will be the first person to take to the streets”.

Addressing the party workers at the dharna site general secretary and RJD national spokesman Shyam Rajak, Patna MP Ram Kirpal Yadav, State party president Abdul Bari Sidiqui and a host of other leaders blamed the State Government for the present power crisis and threatened to launch a district wise agitation from Friday against dismal power scenario. Meanwhile, over 300 RJD workers including the party MLA from Bihpur Shailesh Kumar alias Bulo Mandal, district president Laxmi Kant Yadav and general secretary Arun Shah were detained while organising a ‘road blockade’ near zero mile here.

Meanwhile, in a letter to Union Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde on January 10, Bihar Energy Minister Brijendra Prasad Yadav had accused the Centre of discriminating against Bihar and advised him against “doing politics” over the issue. Mr. Yadav had lamented that despite Chief Minister Nitish Kumar meeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh twice to seek additional 300 MW of power, Jharkhand, which has an installed generation capacity of 1300 MW, was given preference over Bihar. The Minister had said against the allocation of 1,170 mw from the Central pool, Bihar was getting just 600 MW to 650 MW despite being dependent on the Central sector for power as most of the thermal power stations went to the Jharkhand following the bifurcation of the State in November 2000.

Mr. Yadav in his letter to MR. shinde had mentioned that Bihar was left with just two thermal power stations -- one at Kanti in Muzaffarpur and another at Barauni. Only one unit of the Barauni thermal power station is operating on a trial basis after renovation.

Mr. Yadav had also mentioned about coal shortage at Kahalgaon and Farakka thermal power stations as a major reason for low power supply in the State.

“Step-motherly treatment to Bihar may force the farmer to take the extreme step (suicide), like their counterparts in Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra where there is no power to irrigate their lands,” the Bihar minister had cautioned Mr. Shinde in his letter. -- PTI

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