MPTC fires loan salvo at MDA

SHILLONG, July 17: The Meghalaya Pradesh Trinamool Congress on Sunday launched a blistering attack on the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance government for taking loans and putting additional burden on the floundering Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MEECL) without any financial support for operation and maintenance of generating stations for months resulting in inflated bills and frequent power cuts.
Recalling the controversy over the smart meter project, MPTC leader George B Lyngdoh said they had time and again highlighted their concern on how smart meters were not feasible considering the poor mobile network in the state, particularly in the rural areas.
“There was a free loan facility made available by the Government of India and when the Centre was giving it for free why did the state government take loan from elsewhere putting undue burden on the MeECL. We had actually discussed this and had even requested the government not to go for the loan,” he recalled.
He said the loan was procured but the smart meter project has not taken off resulting in wasteful expenditure while pushing the MeECL under a pile of debt.
He also pointed out that the state government took the Atma Nirbhar loan in spite of the opposition’s argument that it would burden MeECL but the government had promised to take responsibility of repayment. “Now we understand that the burden of the loan is being pushed on to the MeECL after clarification from the Ministry of Finance that the state government cannot take financial burden of operations,” he added.
He continued: “The loan was taken without the consent of the MeECL. The whimsical decision of the state government is now putting added burden on the corporation.”
According to him, wasteful expenditure including on the controversial Saubhagya scheme has exhausted the MeECL resources leaving the corporation with no fund for operation and maintenance.
“There is no fund and hence generating stations have not been provided with financial support to buy the spare parts and ensure that the turbines run to bank the power,” he said.
He informed that during the rainy season the Leshka project, which is a run of the river model, generates excess power which augments the power supply in the state and at the same time excess power is banked with the national grid so that the state can take back power during the dry season.
“This cycle has now been broken and since power could not banked, there would be further financial burden on the MeECL during the winter season,” he said.
“We have to buy additional power during the winter. This lack of responsibility and lack of foresight on the part of the government will further burden the MeECL and it will end up generating higher bills and lesser power supply,” Lyngdoh added.