Srinagar, July 16. “Despite today’s better power generation capacity of Jammu & Kashmir, it caters to other states, and the common people here are being forced to beg for electricity and punished under the garb of installation of smart meters,” said senior Congress leader Tariq Hammed Karra on Sunday.
According to a party statement issued here, he made these comments while addressing a meeting of prominent party workers at Khwaja Bagh in the Central Shalteng constituency of Srinagar.
On the occasion, Karra said, “J&K is a consumer market, not a producing market; industrialised and developed states can afford higher power tariffs, but not an economically under-developed state like Jammu & Kashmir.”
Apart from organizational affairs and activities, the senior Congress leader “received feedback with regard to multiple issues confronting common people due to the disconnect between them and the administration in the absence of democratic setup”, the statement said, adding, “Karra was apprised of the current smart meter installation process and people’s inability to pay higher power tariffs due to the economic crisis and the lack of other avenues and extreme joblessness.”
Karra expressed surprise over the way the J&K government, especially the PDD, “seems hell-bent upon thrusting smart meters on the people without even assessing the economic crisis in underdeveloped J&K”. “Our power generation capacity is better, but it caters to other states. J&K being the stakeholder doesn’t get the requisite power supply, rather the government has started installing meters which are bound to add more miseries to people on account of economic crisis and lack of other avenues and demanded that people should be provided electricity as per the past experience,” he said.
If the PDD wants to install meters to every household in J&K without caring about the pathetic conditions of the people, then the supply should be 24X7 without any interruption, he said, adding, “In Jammu, the power supply is an urgent requirement during summer, but it is very surprising that during these hot days, people don’t get the requisite power supply.”
J&K’s economy is totally dependent on tourism which also had a hit for the last three decades, Karra said. He laid emphasis on addressing the people’s issues rather than forcing them (people) to come on the roads for the fulfillment of their demands. “The government must stop diversionary and misleading tactics in J&K and focus on holding assembly elections, without any further loss of time, for the fact, only elected government can reach out to people and address their issues,” he said.
Karra said that Congress Party will strongly oppose every move of the government which goes against the wishes of the people. “People are struggling for their living, the economic burden being put on them in one way or the other shall lead to starvation in J&K,” he said.
