Tamil Nadu’s power procurement has come under fresh political scrutiny after AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami alleged that the state government bought 2,100 MW of electricity at Rs 41.50 per unit and allowed repeated power cuts affecting households and industries.
Speaking after inaugurating an Indian Oil petrol bunk near Kunnathur in Tirupur district on Monday, Palaniswami accused the TVK government of “100% corruption” in power procurement. The allegations were reported by The Times of India. No response from the state government to the specific claims was included in the report.
Palaniswami alleged that consumers and industrial units were facing power cuts of up to 15 times a day. He contrasted this with what he described as uninterrupted electricity supply during the previous AIADMK government, without providing further operational details in the reported remarks.
The AIADMK leader also claimed that 467 factories had shut across Tamil Nadu, affecting nearly 1.5 lakh workers. He said official interference, factory closures and weak investment conditions had worsened the industrial climate and encouraged some businesses to move to neighbouring states.
Palaniswami said existing factories should have received assistance to correct deficiencies and remain operational. He further alleged that schemes introduced during the AIADMK government had been discontinued without adequate review because of claimed irregularities.
The electricity department’s reported debt was put by Palaniswami at Rs 2.58 lakh crore. He attributed the sector’s financial distress to high-cost procurement and administrative inefficiency, but the report did not include an independent verification of the debt figure, procurement price or factory-closure data.
The AIADMK general secretary also raised concerns over rising prices of essential commodities, particularly rice, and sought an inquiry headed by a retired high court judge into the controversy involving Periyar Arivulagam in Coimbatore. He additionally criticised the administration over an allegation that Deputy Speaker M Ravisankar assaulted and threatened a member of the public who approached him with civic complaints. Palaniswami said the next steps should include an inquiry and action against anyone found guilty, irrespective of position.
