Privatization can Save Electric Supply in Uttar Pradesh, but Extremely Difficult in Election Year

 Privatization can Save Electric Supply in Uttar Pradesh, but Extremely Difficult in Election Year

The writer of this post has spent many weeks of June in his home village of Azamgarh district of Eastern Uttar Pradesh. He was pleasantly surprised to see that all houses have been electrified and the piped drinking water is supplied to almost all houses. In addition to it, most of the households have not submersible tube wells to back up a twenty-four-hour water supply. LPG cylinders have replaced the smoke-emitting chulhas. Every person in the village holds a mobile phone in his /her hand and the world has shrunk either in their hands or pockets.

While these are welcome indices of developments, many evil habits have also set in as their concomitants. There is hardly any family which does not have one or two drinkers of liquors. Cycles have been replaced by bikes causing more pollution. Many families have also got four-wheelers, thanks mainly due to the easement of paved roads connecting every village. Land-cost has got skyrocketed. Small-sized cane crushers have disappeared. A new breed of wheelers and dealers has emerged, who make easy money by duping and fleecing both sellers and buyers. Brahmins and Rajputs are the sellers of the land and intermediary castes purchase them.

Though electricity is available for at least 12 to 15 hours yet most of the consumers do not pay any bills. A hook is thrown at the main wire to get the electric connection bypassing the meter. This is done in connivance and complicity with the hydel employees. The graft is openly given and accepted, which suits both employees and consumers. But the ultimate loss is to the state exchequer. Possibly, this was the reason, the state government of Uttar Pradesh had mooted the idea to privatize the distribution of electricity on the pattern of Delhi and Mumbai. It was due to the firm resolve of the late Chief Minister of Delhi, Sheila Dixit that the electric distribution was given to many private companies. There was huge resentment among the DESU employees because they had become habitual of not doing any work and making bribes. However, Ms Dixit did not budge from her decision making it possible to supply uninterrupted electricity in Delhi.

The idea of privatization of electric distribution had to be given up in Uttar Pradesh because of the strong opposition from the Hydel employees, who got open support from opposition parties. The only agenda of the Opposition in Uttar Pradesh is to oppose any move of the government regardless of its being right or wrong. In fact, privatization is the only way out to improve electricity supply, but it is easier said than done. It will be extremely difficult for any government to go for privatization especially in the year when the general election is around the corner in the state.

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Government Schemes in Villages must be Monitored to Stem the Corruption

The disease of corruption has become chronic and has taken such deep roots as to cause nausea. It was expected that the Panchayati Raj system will stem the rot of corruption to a great extent but, unfortunately, on the other hand, it has grown on a bigger scale. Even for an election to the post of Gram Pradhan and BDC member, millions of rupees have been spent. Those who have won the elections of BDC members are being offered a huge amount of money to vote for any particular candidate. This means that black money has played a big role in these elections.

 Obviously, those who are investing an enormous amount of money to get elected must have some ideas or plans to recover and more money through corrupt means. At present, there are many schemes of the government(s), which are being carried out. 

However, this is an undeniable fact that there is no scheme, which can be implemented without giving cuts to Pradhans and Village Secretaries. Only a naïve can ask, how the cuts can be offered when the money is directly transferred to their bank accounts? There is no doubt that direct transfer of benefits has reduced the harassment of beneficiaries, but its extent scale has helped grow the corruption to an unimaginable scale.

The housing scheme of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna has immensely helped the poor people to have roofs of their own but those who are assigned to implement it at the ground level openly make money from beneficiaries by recommending their names and also through the suppliers of building materials. Money earmarked for the paving of the village roads are not spent in the prescribed manners leading to loopholes for making money. It is very difficult to prevent it when the public representatives and the government employees are found to be hand in gloves.

There is no doubt that Goondaism has been largely controlled due to the strictness of the Yogi government, but it has to work really very hard to root out or at least bring down the corruption due to the complicity of the government employees village level Panchayati Raj office bearers are brought down.  To achieve it will be no less than corruption and if this miracle happens then only those having the burning desire for social service will jump into the electoral fray, otherwise only such persons whose aim is to make more money and enjoy the leverages of power by the sheer dint of their electoral offices as it is prevalent at present.