Agartala, Feb 06, 2024, TRIPURATIMES Desk

Agartala Feb 06: Tripura Electricity Consumers Association on Tuesday staged a protest in front of Tripura State Electricity Corporation Limited (TSECL) office in capital city raising allegations against the BJP-led government in the Centre for ‘changing the character of electricity from an essential utility to a profit making commodity’.

A delegation of TECA on behalf of All India Electricity Consumers Association (AIECA) placed a deputation to the Union Power Minister R K Singh through the Managing Director TSECL, Agartala with 4 point demands.

The demands include; Repeal of Electricity Bill- 2022, to stop privatization of the power sector, to stop installation of Prepaid Smart Meter and to repeal the mandatory order issued to the generating companies to import coal for blending with the domestic coal.

Speaking to the reporters, Convenor TECA, Sanjay Choudhury, “We are observing a nationwide protest today to oppose the Electricity Bill- 2022 and various other anti-people decisions of the central government that is jeopardizing the interests of the common consumers at large only for the prosperity of the monopolists”.

“Installation of Prepaid Smart Meters has already added to the woes of the common people, especially a large number of people belonging to economically weaker sections. It is nothing but a conducive step of privatization of the power sector”, he said.

Choudhury further added, “The people of the entire country know how the private power producers including Adani Power have looted the common people by over-voicing the price of imported coal from other countries like Indonesia, Australia, etc. whereas Coal India has sufficient coal reserves. The government must immediately repeal the order issued to the generating companies to import coal for blending with domestic coal as it will increase the tariff of electricity and an additional burden will be imposed on the common consumers”.

The protestors demanded the concerned department of government of India to immediately comply with the demands for the interest of the common people.