G. Kishan Reddy. File.
| Photo Credit: G. RAMAKRISHNA
BJP leader and Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy, who is also the party in-charge of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly election, on Wednesday (September 11, 2024) picked holes in Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s statement on the Union Territory supplying electricity to the rest of the country.
“In a recent election rally, Rahul Gandhi stated that while J&K was providing power to the rest of the country, the residents of J&K were paying more than the rest of the country. These are lies that need to be countered as facts on the ground show a different picture,” Mr. Reddy said.
He alleged that Mr. Gandhi and three generations of Prime Ministers before him were aware that Jammu and Kashmir had tremendous potential to generate 18,000 megawatts hydropower. “Why is it that it was never tapped? Due to neglect of various governments in the past, especially the Congress at the Centre and the NC and PDP in the State, only 3,400 MW of this potential were realised in the past 70 years out of which the State has added only 1,197 MW of power,” Mr. Reddy said.
He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government will able to add another 3,014 MW capacity by 2025-26. “In the fiscal year 2023-24, the J&K government had to spend approximately ₹9,500 crore on power purchases through the Jammu and Kashmir Power Corporation Limited. Power deficit of Jammu and Kashmir has been reduced from 17.8% during 2018-19 to 7.5% during the year 2023-24,” Mr. Reddy said.
He said the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha has a total lack of knowledge and continues to “peddle lies and half-truths”. “His knowledge on power also reflects a similar lack of understanding,” Mr. Reddy added.
Published – September 11, 2024 10:43 pm IST