It is learnt from reliable sources that senior leaders and bureaucrats have spoken to YS Jagan on the issue of smart meters and power crisis which has the potential to galvanise farmers and trigger a mass agitation. They reminded him of how circumstances spiraled out of control during Naidu’s regime in the then united Andhra Pradesh which led to firing also.
The Chief Minister gave a patient hearing to words of advice that he cannot handle the free power supply issue like the way Amaravati was handled. They have told in no uncertain terms that the Amaravati agitation might have been confined to Guntur and Krishna districts, but mishandling of power supply to the Agriculture sector has the potential for backlash to spread like wildfire across the state. Understanding the sensitivity of the issue, the Government has decided to explain to farmers the nitty-gritty of its new proposal to fix the electricity meters.
It chose former Chief Secretary and Advisor Ajeya Kallam to do the explaining, as any Minister or party leaders doing it might be seen with an eye of suspicion. The top man at the moment, Kallam said that the decision to fix electricity meters for free agriculture connections has been taken in line with the Centre’s reforms in the power sector.
However, the neighbouring Telangana had rejected the Centre’s directive on power reforms while Andhra Pradesh has agreed to it. The objective of the Centre behind these reforms is to bring accountability in power consumption, and hence, has asked State governments to fix power meters to every connection. Now, the States implementing free power to the farmers will have to fix meters and allow generation of monthly electricity bills. Then, the states can directly deposit the power subsidy through the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) into the farmers’ accounts to clear the bills.
Allaying fears, the top former bureaucrat tried to reason with people saying the State Government has to implement the Centre’s reforms, and assured to take care of their electricity bills through DBT.
Kallam said that the farmers will be asked to open new bank accounts to credit subsidy directly into their accounts. A new policy would be brought into place so that the Discoms can recover the power charges from the newly opened farmers’ bank accounts, he added.
He also assured to fix the power meters free of cost, despite the mounting financial burden faced by the State Government. Kallam said, “It is not in the blood of CM Jagan Mohan Reddy. He will not let you down. He directed to continue the scheme, as it was a promise given to the farmers.”
All his efforts to clarify the Government side of the story are fine, but when did Kallam learn the language of making “blood promises”?
Are we living in a democracy or under a king’s rule?
