Hyderabad: TRS Chief Kalvakuntla Kavitha has strongly criticised both the Union and State governments, accusing the Centre of stifling small and medium-scale solar panel manufacturers under the guise of reform.
She highlighted a recent Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) directive that mandates domestic manufacturing of solar batteries. Kavitha pointed out that apart from two corporate giants-Ambani and Adani-almost every other Indian manufacturer relies on imports from China. She warned that this policy forces a dangerous duopoly within the renewable energy sector and demanded its immediate retraction. Shifting her focus to local issues, Kavitha slammed the Telangana State Government's proposal to establish a new "Rythu DISCOM." While the government claims this move will ensure quality service for farmers, Kavitha argued it is a disguised step toward privatising existing DISCOMs, which would severely hurt the public. Responding to Chief Minister Revanth Reddy's statement that he would forgo contesting future elections if the new system impacted the 24-hour free power supply, Kavitha challenged him directly. She dared the CM to officially guarantee that the existing two DISCOMs will not be privatised, asserting that any current issues can easily be resolved within the existing framework without system restructuring.