Lucknow, 10 May (HS): Yogi Government’s energy

minister AK Sharma on Sunday said that the SP government had done the work of

completely destroying the power system of the state. He alleged that in the SP

regime, leaders, goons and mafias were given a free license to cut and

run electricity. Energy Minister AK Sharma said that Akhilesh Yadav,

during his tenure, sowed 'Acacia' in the entire power ecosystem of the state.

In a statement issued here, the Power Minister said

that in the SP regime, politicians and people close to them had a free hand in

distributing free electricity. Everywhere their goons and mafias had become

distributors of electricity. He himself used to do Katiyabaazi and used to make

others also do Katiyabaazi. He claimed that power was stolen in a planned

manner in several districts, including Sambhal and Mathura. The Yogi government

acted to rein in such criminals by taking strict action against them.

The power minister said the transformers, wires and

poles installed during the SP government were of very poor quality. Even today,

the problem of bad wires and dilapidated poles that the state is suffering from

is due to the SP government. He said that the Yogi government has made major

reforms in the power system over the years and under the leadership of Prime

Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, the work of

providing better power infrastructure to the state is continuously going on. He

said that the Yogi government has taken the initiative to reform these corrupt

systems. Reduced human intervention through technological improvements and

digital systems to curb corruption and provide relief to the public.

Attack on costly power purchase agreements: AK

Sharma alleged that the SP government also indulged in scams in power purchase.

He said that the SP government had entered into power purchase agreements at

much higher rates than the rate at which the government was purchasing power

today. The people of the state are still suffering its consequences. People

will have to pay the price for years to come. He alleged that recruitments were

made without merit and in a wrong manner, which strengthened the roots of

corruption. Such employees started looting the public from day one and

consumers were exploited at every level.

AK Sharma also accused the SP government of a power

department employees' provident fund scam. He said that thousands of crores of

rupees of PF were invested in the wrong place and efforts were made to sink the

money of the employees. This was the reason why insecurity and corruption

increased among electricity workers.

Government lists major achievements in power sector:

Highlighting the achievements of the power department, the government claimed

that the state now has 24-hour power supply to district headquarters, 22-hour

supply to tehsil headquarters and 20-hour supply to rural areas. From 2017 to

November 2025, 15. 87 lakh new distribution transformers were installed and 765

new 33 - 11 kV sub-stations were constructed. The maximum power demand of the

state has reached 31,486 MW. The government provided 165 lakh new electricity

connections. Installed more than 59 lakh smart meters and extended more than 26

thousand kilometers of transmission line. Also, more than 28.6 million

households were benefitted under Saubhagya Yojana and electricity connections

were provided to private tube wells on a large scale in rural areas.

Hindusthan Samachar / Abhishek Awasthi