Worries for the state government of Maharashtra have increased as the opposition parties, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) have once again slammed the Mahavikas Aghadi (MVA) government over increased electricity bill.
Earlier this month, State Energy Minister Nitin Raut had informed that the government will assist the consumers by offering waiver in the electricity bills, however, the same is being debated now at a time when the debt and burden of MSEDCL are on the rise. Raut shared te information at a recently held press conference and expressed his grievances stating that the government is serious about waiver and is considering solutions to ensure no harm to the consumers.
Adding more he said that the previous Fadnavis government had raised a mountain of arrears for MSEDCL, and their image was portrayed in a different manner. As per data until March 2014, the arrears of MSEDCL had reached INR 14,154 crore, and have now increased to INR 59,148 crore. Meanwhile, MSEDCL also has to bear the cost of power generation and procuring raw materials including coal. Keeping this in mind, it has become difficult for the department to generate electricity.
Addressing further, Raut stated that he has repeatedly written to the Central Government seeking a grant of INR 10,000 crore. However, the decision has not been taken yet and the government has not yet paid the state's GST of INR 28,000 crore. Receiving this money would help the state in waiving off the increased electricity bills. He slammed the BJP and said that if the party has to express anger or protest, it should do so against the Centre.
Consoling the consumers, he added that the government is serious about electricity bill waivers and service to customers is a strong belief. He assured no harm to the customers, as the interest and penalty for arrears will be waived. A team has been formed to understand the matter. However, the concerns have increased for the consumers as Raut had said that they will not offer a discount on increased electricity bills, and will have to pay the same as mentioned. Observing this, leaders from the BJP started preparing for a strong protest against the state government thereby criticising the decision taken.
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