''Beg, Borrow'' But Ensure Power Supply: Sukhbir Badal Tells Punjab Chief Minister

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Tuesday slammed the Punjab government over power crisis in the state and asked Chief Minister Amarinder Singh to "beg, borrow and buy power" to provide round-the-clock electricity to the people.

He further told the chief minister that people need electricity, "not excuses".

Punjab is reeling under an unprecedented power shortage with urban and rural areas facing load shedding and voltage fluctuations.

"@capt_amarinder beg, borrow, buy power; scrap or sign any agreement- do what it takes but give power 24X7 to domestic, minimum 8 hrs daytime to farmers & industry. Stop looking up to skies/rain gods. Deliver or quit. People need power, not excuses. And need it now," said Mr Badal in a tweet.

He lambasted Mr Amarinder for "failing" to add more power generation capacity in his tenure.

"@captain_amarinder 4.5 years: Rise in power demand 4000 MW. Generation capacity added: ZERO UNIT. It actually fell by 880 MWs. Don''t BLAME agreements. SCRAP them. Give power. BIJLEE, NOT BLAME is what Punjabis are crying for," said Mr Badal.

On Monday, the SAD chief had asked Mr Amarinder to scrap power purchase pacts but should also ensure that any power shortfall, with this move, is covered at cheaper rates.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)