Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh today hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for approval to a new scheme 'Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojna' aimed at power reforms in India.
"We hail the decision of the Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister on Thursday, which gave its approval to a new scheme - UDAY - moved by the Ministry of Power," he said.
UDAY provides for the financial turnaround and revival of Power Distribution companies (Discoms) and importantly also ensures a sustainable permanent solution to the problem, Dr Singh said.
While addressing party workers in Srinagar today, he said that UDAY is a path breaking reform for realising the Prime Minister's vision of affordable and accessible 24x7 power for all.
"It is another decisive step furthering the landmark strides made in the power sector over the past one and a half years by the Central government", he said.
The power sector is witnessing a series of historic improvements across the entire value chain, from fuel supply to generation, transmission and consumption (over 2.3 crore LED bulbs distributed) under the leadership of Power Minister Piyush Goyal, he said.
The Deputy Chief Minister said that efforts towards 100 per cent village electrification, 24X7 power supply and clean energy cannot be achieved without revival of Discoms.
"Power outages also adversely affect national priorities like 'Make in India' and 'Digital India'. In addition, default on bank loans by financially stressed Discoms has the potential to seriously impact the banking sector and the economy at large", he said.
UDAY assures the rise of vibrant and efficient Discoms through a permanent resolution of past as well as potential future issues of the sector, he said adding that it empowers Discoms with the opportunity to break even in the next 2-3 years.
The Deputy Chief Minister said that UDAY is a shining example of the utilisation of the best principles of cooperative and competitive federalism and has been evolved through discussions at the highest levels with multiple states.
"Adopting UDAY is optional for states, but provides the fastest, most efficient and financially most feasible way for providing 24X7 Power for All", he said.
UDAY truly heralds the 'uday' (rise) of a 'Power'ful India, Dr Singh said.
