Kerala BJP president Rajeev Chandrasekhar on saturday alleged that the recurring power cuts in the state were "man-made" and reflected the UDF government's failure to address the growing electricity demand.
In a social media post, Chandrasekhar rejected the state government's claim that the outages were primarily due to poor rainfall and low water levels in dams.
"This is not nature's fault. It is man-made. It is the UDF government's outright failure," he said.
The BJP leader claimed that while the Narendra Modi-led Union government was expanding power generation capacity, modernising transmission networks and promoting renewable energy, Kerala continued to pay the price for what he termed decades of mismanagement by the Congress and the CPI(M).
He alleged that successive Congress and Left governments had failed to modernise the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB), secure long-term low-cost power purchase agreements and build capacity to meet the state's rising energy requirements.
Questioning the state's investment climate, Chandrasekhar said uninterrupted power supply was essential for attracting investments, generating employment, supporting startups and strengthening the digital economy.
Claiming that the Congress and the CPI(M) were "no different" when it came to governance, he said Kerala deserved better infrastructure and a performance-driven administration under the NDA.
His remarks came amid increasing power cuts in the state.
State Electricity Minister Sunny Joseph on Thursday attributed the outages to deficient rainfall, low water levels in reservoirs that had reduced hydel power generation and rising electricity demand due to high temperatures.
The minister had also said Kerala was required to return the power it had borrowed during March-April this year, adding that the power restrictions were likely to continue for the time being while the government explored solutions to the crisis.
