Kiran reiterates tariff relief assurance to poor

• ERC recommendations will be reviewedA
• Tariff won't be allowed to burden poor people

Somasila (Nellore): Inaugurating the three-day Indiramma Baata in Nellore district on Monday, Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy lambasted the opposition parties including TDP and BJP for spreading canards about the government schemes. After laying foundation stones for several development programmes, he said that the BJP governments had been selling power to the farmers at the rate of Rs 1.20 per unit and the TDP altogether neglected the people's welfare in its nine-year rule in the State. "Now, both the parties have been raising a hue and cry over the power tariff hike," he said and wondered as to what right these parties have to do that. Among the projects for stones were laid are a high-level canal taken up at a cost of Rs 785 crore from Somasila reservoir to Udayagiri to meet drinking and irrigation needs, a Girijan Gurukul school, Atmakuru irrigation scheme, drainage, road-widening, Kommaleru drain development and others. Asserting that the power tariff would not be made burdensome to the poor, the Chief Minister said that it was the responsibility of the government to review the recommendations of the Electricity Regulatory Commission to give relief to the poor. "We need not learn anything from the BJP which is selling power to the farmer and the TDP which said free electricity was not feasible," he remarked. He recalled that the erstwhile NDA government had extended loans worth Rs. 52,000 crore to the farmers whereas the UPA government had extended loans worth Rs. 700,000 crore to the farmers. The chief minister announced that the government would distribute nine food articles worth Rs.299 for Rs. 199 to the people under public distribution system from Ugadi this year.