Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president, Mehbooba Mufti Thursday said the National Conference and Congress even after having ruled the state for the most part of the post independence period have not been able to provide people basic amenities like ration, power and clean drinking water facilities.“There is unprecedented power crisis prevailing in whole Kashmir and the people have to badly suffer in spite of paying hefty power bills as the power tariff has been increased manifold during the past six years,” she said while addressing roadside meetings in Pattan constituency of Baramulla district.Party’s senior leader and candidate for Pattan constituency, Moulvi Imran Raza Ansari was also present on the occasion.Mehbooba said erratic power supply has badly irritated and affected everybody’s life particularly of student community and the economic sector in Kashmir and instead of working seriously to reform the power sector during the last six years, the ruling National Conference has increased the power tariff more than five folds thus putting the people to more troubles.
Blaming the National Conference for the prevalent power crisis in Kashmir, the PDP Chief alleged it is the NC leadership which has traded our water resources to get chair for the members of the Abdullah family since 1947 both in and outside the state.“It was during the tenure of three generation of Abdullahs that the state saw recurring handover of water resources to New Delhi on unfavorable terms thereby draining the state of its most vital assets without getting anything for the common people,” she said adding even the atrocious power schedule announced by the government is also not being followed thus adding insult to the injury.
Mehbooba said the PDP during its brief stint in the government made all out efforts to streamline the power system which provided the people relief and this inefficient government could not even consolidate on the gains made by our government in the sector.
She said the power sector will remain the prime focus of the PDP government under the leadership of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and it will strive to ensure increased power generation and reduce Transmission and Distribution losses. “We will renegotiate the terms of agreement with the NHPC for return of Salal, Dulhasti and Uri projects so that the state could also enjoy the benefits of assets which the National Conference has traded for petty political gains,” she said.The PDP President said there is huge scarcity of ration, kerosene oil, fire wood and other essential commodities on the ground and the people have been left on the mercy of God by this insensitive government forcing the people to come out on roads to lodge their protest. “People coming out on roads with their demands about the lack of basic amenities has become a regular feature for last six years under the Omar Abdullah’s government presenting a sad comment on its performance,” she said.
Mehbooba claimed that even with all the state machinery at their disposal, the NC government could not solve the infrastructure bottlenecks that have gobbled up the state and has wrecked havoc on the state`s economic lifeline. She said the entire road network across Kashmir is in shambles and is posing a serious threat to the safety of the commuters and pedestrians alike.
“The height of inefficiency of this government is that it could not even properly maintain the existing road network leave aside construction of new roads,” she said and added that one of the main causes of accidents on our roads is their bad condition which this government has so miserably failed to improve.Calling for mass participation of people in the remaining phases of polls also, the PDP Chief said the people’s sufferings will come to an abrupt end soon with the formation of the PDP government in the state.