9 hour power supply causing crop damage: Tummala

​Hyderabad: Roads and Buildings Minister T Nageswara Rao on Thursday urged Energy Minister G Jagdish Reddy not to supply continuous nine hour power supply to the farmers in his constituency.

In an informal chat with Jagdish Reddy in the chambers of the Finance Minister Eatala Rajender in the lobbies of Assembly, Tummala said because of the nine hour power supply, the farmers had used more water than required for the palm oil crop which resulted in damage of crop.

The R&B Minister said that because of the automatic starters, the bores are always kept on and as a result, the water is extensively used for the crops and this was leading to depletion of ground water levels.

The Minister explained that there were more open wells in Telangana and because of extensive usage the ground water level was going down. However, the Energy Minister said that as per the Chief Minister’s directions it was mandatory to supply nine hour power.

If two or three villages under single feeder pass a resolution through their gram Panchayats for supply of power in two or three phases, the request can be considered, he said.

The Energy Minister said that the Chief Minister would not agree for supply of power in phases and reminded that there were no power cuts in the state now. He said that though power demand had increased compared to 2004 there have been no problems till now.

Once the projects are completed, there would be no need for electric motors, he added. He said that from coming year there would be 24 hour power supply in the state.