Amid a power crisis in Punjab, Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu on Sunday pitched for providing up to 300 units of free electricity and round-the-clock power supply to consumers in the state.
Navjot Singh Sidhu also said that domestic and industrial consumers should be given electricity at cheaper rates.
"Punjab already provides 9000 crore subsidy but we must do more for Domestic & Industrial consumer giving power at Rs 3-5 per unit instead of surcharge inflated Rs 10-12 per unit, along with 24-hour supply with No Power-Cuts & Free Power (Up to 300 Units). It is definitely achievable," said Navjot Singh Sidhu in a tweet.
Navjot Singh Sidhu's tweet came days after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal promised 300 units of free electricity for each household and a 24-hour power supply if his party AAP comes to power next year.
The cricketer-turned-politician reiterated that "faulty" power purchase agreements signed during the erstwhile SAD-BJP regime should be nullified through a law.
"Let us start with Congress High Command's Pro-People 18 Point Agenda and get rid of the faulty un-negotiable Badal-signed Power Purchase Agreements through "New Legislation in Punjab Vidhan Sabha" fixing rates as per National Power Exchange with No fixed charges !" said Navjot Singh Sidhu in another tweet.
Navjot Singh Sidhu had earlier also batted for a law to nullify the power purchase agreements (PPAs) signed during the tenure of the previous SAD-BJP government.
The Amritsar East legislator has been at loggerheads with the Punjab chief minister and has attacked him over a host of issues in the past.
On Saturday, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had said his government would soon announce its legal strategy to counter the "ill-conceived" PPAs during the previous SAD-BJP regime.
Amarinder Singh had also said these PPAs, which were already under review, had put an "atrociously unnecessary" financial burden on the state.
Of the 139 PPAs signed by the erstwhile SAD-BJP government, 17 were enough to cater to the state's full power demand, the chief minister had said.
The remaining 122 for 1314 MWs of expensive power were inexplicably signed, putting an unnecessary financial burden on the state, he had said.
Before coming to power in 2017, Congress had promised that it would renegotiate the existing PPAs to ensure low-cost power.
Punjab had been reeling under an unprecedented power shortage with urban and rural areas facing long hours of load shedding amid scorching heat.
The State-owned power utility PSPCL on Saturday had said that following the measures taken by the state government, eight hours of power was being supplied to all agriculture consumers and there were also no scheduled power cuts on domestic, commercial, small, and medium supply industrial consumers in the state.
Big Stars, Proximity To IPL Auction Give Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy Massive Context IPL 2025 Schedule: New Season To Begin Early, Report Says First Match On... 'Cricket Auctions Are A Gamble', Says Ex-Supreme Court Judge AAP's 7 'Revdis' Ahead Of Delhi Polls: Electricity, Education, Water Amazon Employee Greets Friend At Wedding, Dies Of Cardiac Arrest Indian Student In US Accidentally Shoots Himself Dead While Celebrating Birthday Union Ministers Launch World Bank's 'Jobs At Your Doorstep' Report 'Can't Say Everything Parliament Did During Emergency Is Void': Top Court London Police Conduct "Controlled Explosion" Outside US Embassy Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.