There was a Rs 8,000 crore scam in awarding contracts for executing power projects, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy said in the Assembly on Monday.
He criticised the BRS government’s decisions and said that he is ready for a debate on August 1 and 2 on the BRS’s 10-year rule.
He criticized the BRS government for handing over a supercritical power plant project to BHEL although it could have been awarded to some other company at 18 per cent less cost.
Revanth accused BRS leaders of corruption stating that the entire civil work contracts given to BHEL were subcontracted to proxies, relatives and camp followers.
He pointed out that the Bhadradri Power Project launched in 2015, faced substantial delays and cost overruns with the project’s completion pushed from 2017 to 2022 and costs increasing from Rs 7,290 crore to Rs 10,515 crore.
The Chief Minister criticised KCR’s comments on power purchase agreements and noted that the government had accepted the BRS leaders’ demand for a probe into the agreements with Chhattisgarh and the construction of the Yadadri and Bhadradri thermal power projects.
However, he said that opposition leaders had approached the court without presenting their arguments before the commission.
The Supreme Court ordered that the investigation should continue by appointing a new chairman for the commission, which the government plans to appoint any time.
Revanth addressed the BRS leaders’ claims of abundant power generation in the state and attributed the continuous power supply in Hyderabad to decisions of the YSR admin. He emphasised that the assets used for power generation belong solely to the state and highlighted Jaipal Revanth’s role in ensuring a fair distribution of electricity between Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. The Chief Minister accused KCR of misleading the Assembly and cited his own expulsion from the House by Marshals.
He criticized the BRS government’s boasts about solar power generation and pointed out that private companies generate the bulk of it with the government contributing only one MW.
Revanth detailed the corruption in awarding contracts for electro-mechanical and civil works to BHEL and accused the BRS government of violating laws by using outdated sub-critical technology for the Bhadradri Power Project.
He said that 16 officials are facing a probe due to the mismanagement and delays in executing the project.
During the debate, Revanth pointed out the Supreme Court’s rejection of KCR’s plea to abolish the commission of inquiry on power agreements. He criticised the cost overruns and delays in executing both the Bhadradri and Yadadri power projects and attributed the increased costs to corruption.
He pointed out that the NTPC generated power at a lower cost than Yadadri, which he claimed was generating power at a cost of Rs 8.64 crore per MW, while the NTPC’s cost was only Rs 7.38 crore per MW.
Revanth accused the BRS government of cheating the NTPC and emphasized Congress’s role in permitting NTPC to generate power.
He asserted that the opposition is misleading people by using provisions introduced by the Centre in 2023 to cover up their mistakes from 2015.
He also pointed out his past attempts to address injustices faced by Telangana and the Palamuru migration in the United Andhra Pradesh Assembly.
