PHAGWARA, July 28: The Punjab government has decided to roll-back partially the 33 per cent increase in power tariff in the next few days.Indicating this during a talk with media persons here today, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said the decision to revise the power tariff will be taken in two days.The government decided to climb down on the tariff issue following a meeting with captains of trade and industry at Chandigarh yesterday. The trade and industry called off its proposed strike from today in view of the assurance given to them during the meeting, the industry sources said.The chief minister refuted BJP state president Daya Singh Sodhi's charge that the government did not consult the BJP before hiking the tariff, adding BJP ministers were party to the decision taken by the cabinet.When told that his Cabinet colleague Balram Das Tandon, too, opposed the tariff, Badal quipped: ``Both Tandon and Madan Mohan Mmittal were present in the cabinet meeting which took the decision to hike the tariff.''The chief minister claimed that the ruling Akali party has no difference with its coalition partner the BJP, on any of the issues, including that of Udham Singh Nagar. ``We are functioning in full coordination,'' he added.Asked if the Akalis would part company with the BJP at the Centre and in Punjab if the Centre's decision on Udham Singh Nagar went against their party stand, Badal said the party and not any individual will decide it.On Opposition charges against the Akali party having freezed Punjab's outstanding demands, he said we are committed to the demands and would raise them at appropriate time.On performance of his colleagues in the government, Badal said it was being reviewed from time to time but he has no plan to expand or alter his cabinet in the near future.On the charge against the director, Public Relations of Punjab having taken certain people to United States in the guise of hockey players and left them there for a consideration in the past, the chief minister immediately ordered an officer present to get the charge probed and report to him immediately.Hockey circles alleged that Jalandhar-based Surjit Singh Hockey Memorial Society was black-listed by US embassy in New Delhi last year after it was found it had been smuggling people to the US in the guise of players. The director, Public Relations is secretary of the society, which has been organising a national-level tournament at Jalandhar for the last several years.
