BJP leader accuses Punjab government of misleading on power supply
BJP district president Harvinder Sandhu on Tuesday criticized the Punjab government, stating that its claims of providing eight hours of uninterrupted power and being a power-surplus state are only visible in advertisements. He alleged that farmers are facing severe power cuts during the crucial paddy transplantation season.
Addressing media at the BJP office in Amritsar, Sandhu was joined by other party leaders including Dr Ram Chawla, Sukhminder Singh Pintu, Kumar Amit, Salil Kapoor, Mohit Mahajan, Jaspal Singh Shantu, Satpala Dogra, Gopal Verma, and Sudhir Shridhar. They expressed solidarity with farmers who have been staging protests, grid gheraos, and road blockades across Punjab against the power cuts.
Farmers receive only 3-4 hours of power despite promises
Sandhu highlighted that during the paddy transplantation season, Punjab's power demand rises to between 14,000 and 16,000 MW. The government's failure to manage load and supply has become evident to everyone. He pointed out that Punjab has nearly 1.394 million agricultural tubewells, which are essential for the farming economy, yet the government has not provided adequate electricity to them.
“While the Mann government repeatedly claimed to provide farmers with eight hours of electricity, farmers are receiving only 3 to 4 hours of erratic supply,” Sandhu said. He added that the condition of Punjab's thermal power plants exposes the government's lack of preparedness. Several units at the Lehra Mohabbat Thermal Plant remained shut, and the generation capacity of the Ropar Thermal Plant was under pressure.
Government accused of focusing on propaganda, not planning
Sandhu questioned why backup arrangements were not made if the government knew that demand would reach record levels during the paddy season. He accused the Aam Aadmi Party government of being entirely focused on advertisements, social media, and image management. “On the ground, there is neither electricity, nor planning, nor accountability. This government is not power-surplus — it is propaganda-surplus,” he said.
The BJP leaders' support for the farmers comes amid ongoing protests across Punjab, where farmers have been demanding reliable power supply for agricultural operations. The state government has maintained that it is working to improve the power situation, but the BJP claims that the reality on the ground contradicts these assurances.
