Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, July 20: Hundreds of residents of border villages RS Pura led by Taranjit Singh Tony, General Secretary of J&K Pradesh Congress Committee and DDC Suchetgarh today staged a protest against the Union Territory Government over irregular and prolonged power cuts. The protesters highlighted the severe impact of these outages on daily life due to which children are unable to sleep or attend school, and farmers are unable to irrigate their fields during the crucial paddy season.
The protesters gathered at the office of the Managing Director of Jammu Power Distribution Corporation Limited (JPDCL) to voice their grievances. They emphasized that the ongoing paddy season is at risk due to the lack of adequate power supply, questioning how farmers can double their income as claimed by the BJP Government without the necessary resources.
Tony criticized the inhumane approach adopted by the Power Department, accusing it of failing to provide sufficient power to farmers and residents. He pointed out the urgent need to augment the power transformer of 10 MV at Village Beaspur to ensure a stable power supply.
“The Power Department has raised bills almost 300 times higher without any justification, forcing people to pay exorbitant amounts. This is an unjust and exploitative practice that needs immediate rectification,” he said.
Later, a deputation of protesters headed by Tony met MD JPDCL and apprised him of the issues being faced by border people and farmers in absence of regular power supply. They demanded several key measures to address the power crisis, including equal load distribution, the creation of new feeders, and the augmentation of the Miran Sahib power station. These steps, they argued, are essential for ensuring a reliable power supply to all affected areas. Their collective voice underscored the widespread discontent and the urgent need for the Government to address the power crisis and billing issues.
The Managing Director of JPDCL assured the deputation that he would prioritize the augmentation of the power infrastructure and ensure equal load distribution to mitigate the ongoing issues.
The protest was supported by several prominent local leaders, including former Sarpanch Rashpal Singh Gill, Naib Sarpanch Darshan Choudhary, ex Sarpanch Sarabjit Singh, Kala Choudhary, and Satvinder Singh.
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